Bane of Khaos
by Nom Tasty
Summary: His existence was hidden from the world. When the Great Wars were thought to be lost, he was their final weapon. Sent to the future by Ananke and Chronos, he arrived at a time where his family lie in chains from the Gods, pawns of Khaos. Now Perseus, the firstborn of Tartarus and Gaia wants revenge, and even Khaos herself will tremble... Eventual Zoë x Percy! T for language.
1. Prologue - The Contingency Plan

**Disclaimer: I can't stress this point enough - I am sexy. Also I don't own Percy Jackson. Cos if I did, I wouldn't be writing Fanfics. Or would I? DUN DUN DUUUUUN!**

**Summery: His existence was hidden from the world. When the Great Wars were thought to be lost, he was their final weapon. Sent to the future by Ananke and Chronos, he arrived at a time where his family lie in chains from the Gods, pawns of Khaos. Now the firstborn of Tartarus and Gaia wants revenge, and even Khaos herself will tremble...**

**(((o(*****ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o)))**

**Hello there! This is my first attempt at a Percy Jackson Fanfic, so please be nice!**

**Ok, so this idea has been in my head for ages, making anything else pointless, so I decided to write it out. Yay for me! Anyway, it came to me when browsing all the amazingly unique stories on this (By Anaklusmos14, Anonemuss14, kevin1984, and many, many other authors!) and I thought I'd give it a bash! So, to those of you who actually read these notes, check their awesome stories out!**

**(****＞人＜****;)**

**As usual, I have actually no plan on writing this. There's something there, but it is about twenty words, so... But hopefully this will be not that difficult... Hopefully...**

**Anyway, reviews are really appreciated! Even flames (as long as they're somewhat productive) and a favourite or follow would be AMAZING!**

**Now, I've talked way to much, so ON WITH THE STORY!**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: I know there are two myths for Eros (born out of Khaos or from Aphrodite and Ares), but I am doing the Aphrodite and Ares one.**

* * *

**Bane of Khaos**

**Prologue - The Contingency Plan**

Four figures ran through the dark caverns of the Underworld. The first was a woman, no older than twenty years old, with bright green hair and glowing green eyes. Her skin was a light brown, like she had been tanned badly, and she wore a simple dress that looked like it was made of thousands of small stones held together by something.

The second was a man, slightly older than the woman at about twenty-two years old, with pitch black hair and deep black eyes. He wore a cloak that looked like it was made of pure darkness, a complete contrast to his pale white, almost ghostlike skin.

The third was a serpent-woman. From the waist up, she was a regular woman, around thirty years old, with long white hair and pale, pupil-less eyes. The only thing that hid her modesty was a bandage that covered her chest. Her skin was a aqua-blue colour that matched the snake-half of her body, which began at her waist, elongating into a long tail about five meters long, with small, blue scales.

The fourth and final figure was a small boy. He was no more than twelve years old, with pitch black hair, bright green eyes, and tanned skin. He wore a simple pair of black shorts, similar to the man's, and his body was shaped and muscled like the man. He sat on the back of the serpent-woman, while the man and woman ran beside him.

"Quick!" The serpent-woman hissed, a forked tongue slipping out her mouth. "They won't be too far behind usss."

As if summoned by her words, three figures appeared behind them. All three were dressed in Greek togas. The front man had black hair with piercing blue eyes, and held a long, glowing cylinder in his hand. The man to his left also had black hair but with deep green eyes and held a large bronze trident, almost bigger than him. The final man to the right also had black hair, but had dark brown eyes, almost black, and held a war helm in his hands.

The woman quickly stepped forward before anyone could stop her. "Go, take Perseus!" She hissed. Tartarus opened his mouth to argue but she silenced him with a single finger. "Tartarus, please! They think I'm alone!" She was right. Reluctantly, he stepped back, and ran towards the child. Tartarus, Perseus and the serpent-woman quickly began to move again, sparing one last look to her before disappearing into the darkness of the cave.

She turned to the already advancing men and scowled. "So you're not satisfied with just imprisoning my children that you're now moving onto your grandmother?" She hissed, the earth around her grumbling in agreement.

"Gaia." The man holding the large glowing cylinder said, with slight caution.

"Lords Zeus, Poseidon, Hades." She said, mockingly bowing to them. "It's an honour you know of me."

Hades scowled. "Whatever you're up to Gaia it will not-"

"Ah, ah, ah!" She sang, wagging her finger. "Gaia is not something you young boys should call me! Call me Grandmother. Or Grandma. Grannie and Nana makes me sound old."

On the outside, she appeared to be totally relaxed calm, but on the inside she was panicking. She needed to waist as much time as possible with these Gods to let her family - her true family - escape. Playing it cool and slightly arrogant was the only way to mask the emotions.

"What are you up to Gaia?" Zeus growled. Said primordial completely ignored him.

"What are you up to Gaia?" Hades sighed. There was still no response.

"What are you up to... Grandmother...?" Poseidon said, saying the word Grandmother almost like it was a question, obviously unusual on his tongue.

"Why didn't you ask Idon - can I call you that?" He shook his head viciously. "Lovely! Anyway _Idon_, _Ze _and _Des_ here-" Both Zeus and Hades cringed at their new nicknames, but decided to tolerate it if they could hear her motives. "-aren't as polite as you. If only they were as good a child as you..." She sighed wistfully.

Hades, (self proclaimed) master of deception noticed small anomalies in her movement. The stiffness in her hands, the way her eyes shifted almost madly between them... It all contradicted her words.

"So Gaia... Grandmother..." He winced at the word. Family had never been good to him. "Trying to hide yourself?" Her eyes focused on him, showing no reaction. "Trying to hide from us?" Very small reaction. "Trying to hide something from us?" Slight hint of worry. "Trying to hide someone from us?" Bingo. Her eyes light up in complete panic. Hades smirked in success.

"I don't know what you mean." The words, even to the untrained ear, sounded hollow and fake.

"Who are you protecting?" Zeus sneered. "Typhon fell to the might of all twelve Olympians... And Hades." He added hastily after his brother shot him a glare. "You won't be able to throw anything worse out way!"

Gaia froze for a moment, and the Gods mistook it as shock from Typhon's defeat. Then, she laughed. She laughed out of glee, relief and just pure amazement at the power her son possessed.

"It took all thirteen of you?" She smirked. "I was wondering why we had more time than we thought."

We. The word floated through the air, Gaia's eyes widening in realisation of her slip up. Three eyes bore into her, and she thought fast. There was a way to turn this situation to her advantage... Right?

Then it hit her. There was. It gave the entire game away, but he would be protected until the time came, when he would right all the wrongs created. What harm could a little fear and anticipation do?

With a small flick of her wrist, she summoned an armchair for herself, a bench for the three Gods and a small table between them from the earth. Sitting down and resting in the armchair, she gestured to the bench. The Gods ignored her invitation, making her snort.

Typical paranoid behaviour.

"You want to know about this 'we' thing, correct?" The three Gods looked at her, eyes focused and narrowed at her. They didn't say a word, only Zeus nodding stiffly implied any reaction.

"Well, Tartarus and I sired a child." She began. "Our son. He held power beyond belief, easily out matching myself. Once he found out we were loosing in the war, he made his move." She smirked at the ignorance portrayed by her grandchildren. They thought then knew all this. "As he was the firstborn of both myself and Tartarus-" This raised a few eyebrows. "-he decided to help us out." She smirked, knowing this next bit was the punchline.

"So he created Typhon."

This shocked the Gods so much that they sat down. The shock on their faces quickly dissipated as Zeus started to speak.

"Impossible!" He shouted. "Such power would have been impossible to hide! If he did exist, he would quickly join our father in the pits of Tartarus!"

The earth rumbled madly, and the bench that the Gods sat on wrapped around them, the earth slowly growing up them. It was in that moment that she decided her future. She would destroy these Gods, rescue Kronos and destroy the new Olympian rule, without her child. She wanted to protect him.

Squeezing her hands, the earth followed her example and did the same to the three beings in the newly formed rock-cocoons. They began to shrink, slowly crushing the three Gods inside. When they were about half the size, she stopped when she felt a familiar presence behind her. Turning around, she saw the one being she never wanted to see again.

"Mother..." She hissed.

Standing before her was her mother, Khaos the creator. She looked to be four years of age, with long blond hair and pale white skin. When Gaia blinked, she was an young woman, around twenty or so, with short brown hair and tanned skin. When she blinked again, she was an elderly woman, with grey hair and chocolate coloured skin. Then Gaia blinked again, and she looked different. Whenever anyone blinked or just stopped focusing on her, Khaos' form would change. It would always be a female, and never the same form twice. No one would see the same form either, but no matter what, everyone knew who she was. Her presence was unmistakable.

"Hello daughter." She said. No matter what form Khaos took, her voice remained the same soft, elegant voice echoing as if it was from all around at once. "Nice to see you again."

"Cut the chitchat and tell me what you want." Gaia said, cutting Khaos from saying anything else.

"Fine then." Khaos smiled, the smile becoming insanely twisted when it appeared on a woman covered in scars, holding a mace and a shield, wearing full battle armour. "I came with a warning. You chose a side, and I chose the other. And you will loose." She said the last sentence with her finger prodding Gaia on the chest.

"I would like to see you try." Gaia hissed.

Khaos shrugged and turned away towards the shadows, but stopped and looked over her shoulder, her currently hazel eyes staring into Gaia's glowing green eyes. "Just remember, you brought this upon yourself. Now join your son Typhon in eternal imprisonment." With that she clicked their fingers and vanished.

Gaia only had a second to mull over the fact that the all knowing Khaos didn't know Perseus existed before she was hit in the stomach with what felt like the whole sky (and she knew what that felt like). She was blasted into the wall before collapsing on the floor, her eyes looking over her stomach, which had a large hole that lead straight to the other side. Sand poured out of the wound, and the earth around her attempted to rush to heal it, but it would take some time.

She looked up to see the three Gods advancing on her. Zeus' lightning bolt was sizzling, steam coming off the end of it, and Gaia realised with a shock that she was hit with it and was hurt. Normally, that lightning bolt had the effectiveness of throwing dust into a primordial's face, just very inconvenient, and to her it was even less so, being Mother Earth and all that, so she naturally was able to be unaffected by it. Yet, that time, it was like it had been supercharged-

Khaos.

It was all her. No wonder Kronos had lost his own scythe and cut into pieces by it. No wonder all her children (well the ones she cared about) were able to be imprisoned. No wonder Erebus and Nyx were strangely absent from the world. Khaos had manipulated everything for her own personal gain.

Gaia managed to curse her mother before she was hit by another lightning bolt, making the whole world turn black.

* * *

Tartarus instantly knew what had happened. He felt the raw power of Khaos, her interference on the fight, and felt his love being restrained. They were almost at the meeting place, almost safe, when he felt the Gods move again. They were after him now, meaning that Gaia told them about his involvement, maybe even Perseus'.

Tartarus smiled sadly. It looked like Perseus would be without both parents.

Turning, he looked both Perseus and the serpent-woman in the eyes, before turning around. "Ananke..." He whispered, without looking at her.

"I know." She hissed back, regret lacing her voice. "If only it wasss different. Perssseusss dessservesss a family. But if thisss worksss..."

"Dad..." Perseus said, his voice low and quiet. "It'll be fine. I'll be back, and we all can be a family again."

Tartarus nodded, but didn't speak as they disappeared into the darkness once again. They were in the deepest pits of the underworld, working their way through his realm to what lay beneath, the realm of fate and time, where Khaos herself has no sway. He wanted to run after them, to stay with his one and only son, but he couldn't. He needed to buy the time, even if it was just a few extra seconds.

Bound by laws older then Khaos, he, like none of the other primordial deities could deny any being, immortal or not, access to his realm. But that didn't mean he couldn't make it difficult for them. He had the whole of Tartarus at his disposal, and even though he couldn't free anyone from their prison, it didn't mean that he couldn't move the prison itself. Within a few seconds, he had managed to shift all the enemies the Gods had made throughout the years into the room with him. Settling himself on a black throne, he cleared his face of all emotions, portraying a perfect image. He was the essence of fear - not counting his son - the being that the Gods fear, not a family man. Even of it was a lie, it was his only advantage.

He didn't wait for long. There were six bright flashes, and six people appeared in front of him. Three were men, the same three that Gaia attempted to delay, while the other three were women. One was wearing a completely white toga, her long blonde hair tied neatly into a bun, and was standing tall and proud. Next to her was a woman, with a deep forest green toga, and long brown hair. She was holding a bundle of hay, like she had just been farming. The last was a small girl, the only one who didn't appear in the form of an adult, with long brown hair and a orange toga. Her eyes were burning, and she radiated power that the others lacked.

Upon their entrance, the room filled with noise from the prisoners. They roared at the Gods, shouting curses at all but one, Hestia.

"Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter, Hestia." He attempted to remain neutral and cold, but his voice betrayed him and on Hestia's name, it showed respect. However, she was the only one to pick up on this, making a smile play at her lips.

"Tartarus." Hades said respectfully, his voice laced with slight fear. "What... What is this?"

"What is this?" He echoed. "This is the world of fear, of nightmares. I just thought you'd want to see those who hate you." He clapped his hands together, and the room grew smaller, the monsters around the edges getting closer. "So, you want Perseus, do you?"

On the name, Zeus straightened up and looked towards him. "Is that the name of your son?" He sneered. "The one that probably doesn't even exist?"

Tartarus smiled a cold, bone-chilling smile. "If he didn't exist, you wouldn't even bother coming here. You're scared, that if he can create Typhon, what else could he make?"

"Indeed." Hestia spoke, her childlike voice filled with power. "We want to know about his origin, his birth."

Tartarus nodded. "Fine I will. Gaia thought it to be appropriate to be shared, so I might as well tell you-" And Khaos, he silently added. "-the rest."

"As you know, in the beginning, Khaos had four children." The Gods nodded. "Two sets of twins. First came Gaia and I, then came Erebus and Nyx. Gaia and I were happily together until-" He stooped, and cocked his head to one side before growling. "Fine. Anyway, before things happened - which I'm not allowed to go into detail about - Perseus was born, first born of firstborns of a firstborn... He became powerful, yada yada yada..." He sighed, his composure slipping. "Stupid ancient laws..." He grumbled. "Not allowed to reveal anything..."

"What is he?" Hera asked, somewhat sympathetic. She knew the trouble the ancient laws could cause. "Are you allowed to tell us what he represents?"

Tartarus thought for a moment. "Yes I can. He is Perseus, primordial deity of Creation, Destruction, Love and Fear."

The Gods stopped moving, frozen is spot, and Tartarus felt Khaos enter his realm. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed that Hestia didn't freeze with the rest, but copied them after a few seconds. Before he could have time to plunder this, Khaos appeared in front of him.

"I'm disappointed..." She tutted at him, wagging her finger. One of her forms held a spear which made her look intimidating, and slightly insane. "That you did this behind my back..."

"Because of what you did to us, this is nothing." Tartarus spat back.

"But a child..." She sighed dramatically, her form changing to a beautiful woman with a hand on her heart. Then she turned serious. "You do know this wont change a thing." She hissed at him. "Nothing can. The ancient laws forbid for any intervention from a higher divine force. Even I cannot break it. The Gods are my pawns, and they do what I please."

Tartarus just smirked, eyes glowing dangerously. "But you forget, oh dear sweet mother, about his control." He leaned in, so his mouth could whisper into her ear. "He is the deity of Creation and Destruction. If he sees fit... The ancient laws will bend for him. The world, the universe... The whole of existence will bend to his will." He backed away from her. "You said _you_ cannot break the laws, but _he_ can. If he can do that, what else can he do which you can't?"

With a scream of rage, Khaos destroyed Tartarus' physical body, tying his essence to his realm so that it would take him millions of years to reform. She flicked her wrist, wiping the memory of all the frozen Gods in the room and sending them back to Olympus, before shimmering away to think, not sparing the room a second glance.

Hestia watched as she saw Tartarus and Khaos argue, Khaos destroy his body, and sending the Gods away. The words of the conversation stayed in her mind. '_The Gods are my pawns_'... '_You said you cannot break the laws but he can_'... '_They do what I please_'...

She needed to mull this over, and find out what these words meant, because if they were true, the war she had just supported was wrong.

* * *

Perseus slowly slid off the blue scales on Ananke's back, touching the white floor. They were in a pure white room, with nothing in it apart from a old leather book and a miniature ornate grandfather clock on a white table. In the centre of the room (or what he guessed to be the centre) was a large grey stone-like object, floating calmly in place.

Next to the table was another serpent-person, with the same length tail as Ananke, except it was a deep red colour. His upper body was human, but he held three heads: a lion on the left shoulder, human in the middle and bull on the right shoulder. The human head, like the body, was red skinned and had dark brown hair. He looked about thirty years old, and was watching Ananke and Perseus as they approached.

"Chronosss!" Ananke smiled. "Here isss Perssseusss. Unfortunately Tartarusss and Gaia didn't make it. Our dear sssissster Khaosss intervened. I ssshall look for the directionsss on hisss return." She slithered over to the table next to Chronos, picked up the book and began to look through it rapidly.

"Perssseusss..." Chronos said as he approached the boy, his voice deep and rough. "Do not fret about your family. You will be able to reunite, and ressscue them if need be, when the time comesss."

Perseus nodded. Ananke moved over to them, holding the book. "I found it." She hissed. "Here it isss:

After one betraysss her family for one half-man,

After the disssappearance of the great god Pan.

After the godsss have played masssquerade,

After the war and the great vow isss made.

At the theft of the Godsss on the daysss of Yule,

The bane of Khaosss to create new rule."

Chronos nodded, and slid to the table and picked up the small clock. After thinking for a moment, he placed it down and returned. "A few of them at too vague to pinpoint any moment in time, but a few are of ussse. The god Pan disssappearsss in about one-hundred-and-fifty or ssso yearsss, the war and great vow isss in over two and a half thousssand yearsss, and the theft isss in about three thousssand yearsss."

"What is with the first line?" Perseus asked. "It's too common for it to of any use."

"Ah Perssseusss..." Ananke sighed dramatically. "Sssuch foolissshnessss... It isss on there asss an important detail for you. Ssshe could be the one for you." She winked at him. "It'sss more of a warning to go easssy on her when you find her."

Perseus thought that over. Someone to spend his life with, to be his. He smiled when he thought of his parents. That'd be nice.

* * *

**And ta-da! First chappie up! Whoohoo! I feel really pleased with this chapter, and the whole story in general.**

**Ok, so if you can't tell already, it's probably going to be a Zoë x Percy story. Can't help it, just love the pairing! So reviews are absolutely adored, and I would love it if people could tell me they liked it (fingers crossed!).**

**Anyway, if you are bored, re-read Anaklusmos14's stories. I assume you have already read their stories because they are awesome, but if not, do it!**

**Ok I'm done now.**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	2. Chapter 1 - The Legend of Heracles

**Disclaimer: Tis be a fine specimen that hither not own upon thyself. Ok I don't even know what i said either... I don't own Percy Jackson etcetera and certainly don't own myths (but that'd be AWESOME!).**

**（ーー；）**

**Ah... Wow. I was out shopping today and saw the funniest thing in the history of life. I was looking at cereal and this old woman walked past me with a cane - looking about 100 years old at LEAST - and she bumped into another old woman, about the same age, but holding a basket. Said basket was dropped and I expected to hear they typical old woman talk about 'Sorry' and 'Back in my day' but what actually happened was she started screaming at the one with the cane, her precise words being "What the f**k are you doing? Are you senile, old woman?" Yes, she said 'senile' and 'old woman'. The response she got was "You want me to shove this up your arse after I knock your teeth in?". They both had to be calmed down by staff, and there I was, cracking up and practically dying, holding a box of Shreddies. Yum.**

**Thought I'd share that. It made my day - hell, it made my MONTH.**

**|(￣****3￣****)|**

**So... Thanks for the responses!**

**Striking-Thunderbolt: Sorry about that! I just write as I go, half of it was sitting there for about a month, so I lost the flow I had... I'll try to do better!**

**Avardsin: Why thank you! Have another one!**

**SONxOFxCHAOS: Sorry about any confusion. I like the Percy x Hestia stuff, but I feel like this is a Percy x Zoë fic. Here's another chapter, which will hopefully stop any more confusion (hopefully).**

**PJandLGequalsLove: Thank you... Wow, thank you!**

**(o_o)**

**Now onwards to the chapter!**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: I do not condone old lady fights. I do not, however, condemn them either.**

**PSS: Ok, there is some male/male reference in this (not Percy!) so if that bothers you (why it would I'd never know), meh, suck it up.**

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**Bane of Khaos**

**Chapter 1 - The Legend of Heracles**

Perseus sat on the white floor, his chlorophyll-green eyes closed. He legs were crossed, and he was wearing the same black shorts he had always worn - a gift from his father - and his breathing was calm and relaxed.

He was meditating, as advised by the two serpents Ananke and Chronos, trying to control his power. As the world grew, as more mortals and immortals were born, so did his powers. Every bond of love and hate, every creation and every destruction of anything and everything added to his power. He now knew why Khaos would not allow him to exist. He would just grow to powerful.

He knew everything that was happening in the outside world. He saw his family - the ones he cared about - in their unique prisons. His mother, chained beneath the earth in a deep slumber; his father, forced to remain bodiless and trapped in Tartarus; the Titans, under every punishment imaginable from being scattered in tiny prices in Tartarus, being chained to stone and even holding up the whole sky for all eternity. Hell, even Calypso was trapped on Ogygia.

Yet, as Ananke predicted, he was useless. Yes, if he focused hard enough and used lots of energy, he could do very small alterations, but usually his power couldn't reach out, so all he could do was watch their suffering, and wait. He watched as the Gods abused their power, monument erected for miles dedicated to them. He watched how the Gods descended to the mortal world from their palaces on Mount Olympus, creating many demigods which they used for their amusement. He watched Greece grow and thrive, yet bound to the Gods themselves.

Currently Perseus was watching a hero - Heracles or something like that - through his life. It was a prime example of the egotistical Gods and their offspring. In his early life he was harassed by Hera herself for his mere parentage, being the illegitimate son of Zeus, and everything from being trapped in the womb to sending snakes into his cot to strangle him.

Yet, Heracles followed in his father's footsteps. Because of bing gifted at a young age by Hera's divine milk, he became cocky in power, in lust for more. He killed his own music teacher, Linus, with a lyre after being reprimanded for a mere mistake Heracles himself caused.

Later in his life, Heracles murdered his six sons in cold blood. The world believed that it was a curse of madness from Hera, but Perseus knew what really happened. The divine milk which gave him his strength protected him from the curse, but he used it as an excuse to murder his own children. The love he once had for them changed to fear, fear of them challenging him, fear of them refusing his orders, fear of them besting him... So he killed them.

Then his father offered him a way of redemption, and even a reward of immortality for assisting his cousin Eurystheus. This was a way for Heracles to escape death itself, to escape judgement, just because of the Gods interference.

There was one point where he became a man. Just a man, no fear, no hate, not even a demigod, just a man. It was when he was with Hylas. Perseus felt the bonds of love between them grow, overcoming the lust for power. Hylas had the power to remove Heracles from the Gods' grasp forever, and almost did so before Zeus interfered. Hylas was kidnapped by nymphs and murdered by Zeus himself, Heracles being lead to believe that he left because he loved one. After this, he never loved another again. Yet, Hylas had changed him for the better.

Perseus watched as Heracles began his eleventh labour, without a word of complaint. Apparently two were forfeit as he had help or was paid, so he was 'required' to do two more. The first was to steal a golden apple of immortality from the Garden of Hesperides, the second to subdue and retrieve Cerberus.

He watched as Heracles interacted with the youngest of the eight Hesperides sisters Zoë. She was the most adventurous, the one who had the biggest desire to explore the world, but she was trapped in her prison. Her brown eyes were shining with excitement, and she was fumbling with a small hairpin in her long black hair. Heracles talked with a straight face, his electric blue eyes showing no emotion and his short black hair moving slightly in the wind.

"What are they saying?" Perseus' companion asked, looking over his shoulder. His eyes shot open and he turned his head to look at his companion.

He was about twenty years old, with short blond hair and big green eyes. He was short, around five and a half foot tall, with small muscles on his body. He was wearing hunter furs, ranging from greys to blacks to browns, and had a large celestial bronze knife on his belt, and a grey metal one directly next to it.

"Hush, Hylas, I am trying to see." He said back, before closing his eyes again, attempting to focus.

Hylas pouted. "Sorry Perseus..." He muttered, before looking back to the talking figures. Looking at Heracles again brought back all his memories with him, both good and bad.

The time he spent with him, even though it was short and they hunted monsters... It wad the best time his life. He remembered, it was after Heracles' first or second labour, and they were together until just after the seventh when it happened...

* * *

_Hylas was out in the woods, searching for berries. It was early in the morning, a crisp breeze blowing though the forest. The sun had risen only a little, creating the perfect light to hunt for edible fruits and plants._

_Foraging was his speciality. While Heracles had the ability to crush the throat of a bear with his pinky, he didn't have the patience to look for edible plants. Also, he had a bad habit of grabbing fruit too hard, making it burst in his hands. It was then that they decided that while Heracles would be responsible for meat, he himself would gather the herbs and vegetables._

_He had been out for about three hours, wandered about two miles away from the camp when he began to feel uneasy. The shadows in the forest became more prominent, the leaves and stray twigs became sharper and more dangerous, the sky darker, even though it was in the middle of the day._

_Hylas decided to quickly head back. Usually, severe changes in the environment like that was usually the fault of divine presence, and most of the Gods didn't like him. Doubling back seemed like the smartest thing to do._

_It took another ten minutes for Hylas to confirm the fact that it was divine presence. He was completely and utterly lost, the forest shifting around him, removing any familiar landmark._

_"Mortal."_

_The voice came from behind him, making him jump and spin around, to see a man he recognised. His blood turned cold at the all-too familiar God in front of him. Zeus._

_He took a hesitant step back - or he tried to anyway, only to discover his path to be blocked by a mesh of foliage that had the strength of a stone wall._

_"Handy, isn't it?" Zeus said, Hylas looking in every direction for an escape route, only to discover that there was none._

_He was trapped in an arena with a pissed off King of Gods._

_He had no chance._

_"What... What do you want?" Hylas said, his voice small and feeble even to his own ears._

_"When I'm the presence of a God, you should bow!" Zeus shouted. On the last word, the roots and plants forced Hylas down onto his knees, dragging his head down. It was done with so much force, he could feel it tremble up his spine, making a sicken crunch that made him shout in pain._

_"Nifty the power the nymphs own, isn't it?" Zeus smirked. "Robbing your food, leading you hear with the forest..." He started to slowly pace. "You do know why I'm here, right?"_

_"N-No... I-"_

_"SILENCE MORTAL!" He shouted again, making the vines that held Hylas in place shoot up, wrapping his mouth closed. "You dare talk in my presence, you dirty half-nymph!"_

_The plants hummed in protest, but did nothing._

_"Now speak-" The plants removed themselves from around Hylas' mouth. "-and tell me how you did it."_

_"D-Did what... Sir?" He said tentatively._

_"Playing the fool will get you nowhere!" Zeus yelled. "How did you seduce my son?"_

_Hylas opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. He couldn't produce any noise from the shock coursing though his system._

_"One last chance." Zeus hissed. "How. Did. You. Seduce. My. SON!"_

_"I... I..." Hylas stuttered._

_"What? Spit it out!"_

_"I... Didn't?"_

_As soon as the words left his mouth, he knew it was the wrong thing to say. Zeus roared at him, from pure fury, and thrusted his hand up to the sky. A large lightning bolt shot down to him, flashing once before disappearing, leaving behind Zeus in full battle armour, holding his master bolt. Before Hylas' mind could even contemplate what was happening, Zeus threw the glowing cylinder at him._

_Perseus watched the interaction, anger bubbling deep inside him. It was his mother and father all over again, but this time the one hit by the lightning would die. He had kept a close eye on Heracles, and an even closer eye on the bond between them. It was one of the strongest he had seen, and he certainly would not let it die._

_Focusing, he drew upon all the power he could muster. True as it was that he had gained power over the years, to breech the barrier between the dimensions was another thing entirely. So he drew upon two other things: the power of the bond, and the power of the godly weapon._

_Even though Zeus thought that by sorting out the 'Hylas problem' himself would ensure the death of him, it was actually the exact opposite that resulted from it. Because of his involvement, it gave Perseus the opportunity to save him. And he took it._

_It was a taxing effort. Even with all the extra power from both the bond and the godly weapon, he was just able to save him. To pierce through the dimensional walls was an almost impossible task, never mind doing something while keeping the rip open. But he succeeded, and saved Hylas._

_Hylas was... Completely confused, no doubt about it. One moment the King of Gods was personally getting ready to kill him, the next he was in a completely white room, with a twelve year old boy watching him tiredly, like he had just ran a marathon. Not only that, he could feel the power radiating off him through his half-nymph side, something that never happened before, not even with Zeus. So he followed his instincts._

_He ran._

_Not that he got far. It only took three steps for him to run straight into the twelve year old. He just literally appeared in front of him, wearing a confused expression, like he couldn't understand why Hylas was running. And it was true, he really couldn't. He had saved him, right? So why was he wary?_

_"Who... Who are you?" He whispered._

_"I am Perseus."_

* * *

Heracles was running away, with an golden apple in one hand and a sword in the other, Zoë running close behind. Behind them were the Hesperides, Atlas and the fallen dragon Ladon. While Ladon was regenerating and Atlas was suffering under the weight of the world, the seven remaining Hesperides sisters were chasing the duo.

"You are not a daughter of mine!" Bellowed Atlas, from far behind the two running people. A glow engulfed Zoë as she lost her immortality and became mortal, also inadvertently removing her from the prison.

They continued to run until they could no longer see her sisters before stopping, Zoë gasping for breath. She felt like she was going to collapse, especially since her mortality returned.

"Thank you..." She sighed, collapsing on the ground. He said nothing, but offered her sword back to her, but she shook her head. "No, keep it. You deserve it. After everything we've both been through, I just hope..."

She stopped, her words falling short. She knew his plan, probably one of the only people in the world who did, and even though she respected his decision, she wished he would change his mind.

"If you change your mind..." She whispered. "Please tell me."

With that, she hugged him before running off, looking back only once.

Heracles mulled over what she had said. He had decided long ago that after freeing his soul of the sin he had acquired though his past, he would kill himself. He regretted his actions on his children, but he blamed his father. It was in his blood to be scared of being overthrown, to lust for power... His own curses to bare.

Thinking of his father made him mad. He knew what had happened that day, when Hylas went missing... He knew what his father did, what he did to Hylas. He knew his love was dead, so he planned to join him.

After delivering the proof to his cousin Eurystheus (who had long ago stopped bothering him) he accepted his twelfth and hopefully final labour: subdue and capture Cerberus.

Finding a way to the Underworld was more difficult then he thought. It took research, time and effort to find it, and physically getting there was another matter entirely. Athena and Hermes assisted him to reach the far shores of the Underworld, presumably forced by his father - who wanted Heracles to reach immortality as soon as possible.

Before he reached Charon, he met yet another Goddess.

"Lady Hestia." He bowed, making the small eight year old smile.

"Heracles." She smiled to the demigod.

"Why are you here?"

"I am here to help you cross the river Styx." She looked him in the eyes. "Charon is one who is not easy to convince."

He nodded stiffly. No doubt that this was his father - yet again. It made him mad, but he skilfully hid it. No use riling up the Gods when he was close to his goal. He started to walk to the black boat.

"He is not where you seek."

He froze. Eyes wide, he turned to the former Olympian Goddess who had changed her form to make it one of a twenty year old.

"He is not in the land of the dead, nor is he in the land of the living."

Heracles, for the first time in a long time, felt his mask slip. "B-B... H-How...?"

She smiled mischievously. "It's as they say: Home is where the heart is."

With that she vanished into a column of flames, shooting Chiron a look that gave no room to disagree.

Heracles was in a daze. He walked through the Underworld without a though, not registering the ghosts of the dead around him. He thought quickly, a new plan forming in his mind. Hades would be able to confirm what Hestia said, but he felt like she was telling the truth.

If Hylas wasn't dead, nor was he alive, did that make him immortal?

Everything else was a blur. Before he knew it, he was on Olympus celebrating with all the other Gods about his new status as Heracles: Gatekeeper of Olympus

God of heroes, sports, athletes, health, agriculture, fertility, trade, oracles and divine protector of mankind. Quite a mouthful. He guessed that his father had a hand in what became his sphere of activity.

It wasn't hard for him to slip away from the party. Apart from his father, Apollo and Hebe (who was very clingy to him for some reason) no one approached him. He guessed Hera had a hand in that, and for the first time in his life, he was grateful towards her.

It was slightly confusing. Because if the 'divine protector of mankind' but in his titles, be knew where any and every mortal was, what they were wearing and when they breathed. It didn't overload him, but he merely sifted through the masses to find the one he wanted. It only took him about two seconds to find Zoë and flash to her.

She was sitting by the sea, her feet dangling in the water, eating some red berries. She had lost weight, but he knew that it was from not being used to foraging for her own food. She looked at him and smiled, relief evident in her features.

"I'm guessing something changed." She mused. He nodded and proceeded to tell her everything that had happened.

Once he was done, her eyebrows were raised. "It's almost poetic, isn't it? The God of Heroes on a quest to find his true love, who is beyond the land of the dead."

He smiled sadly. Ever since his small talk with Hestia, his mask had never really reformed. "Ah, but this is the price I pay for my sins. There's nothing I can do but wait. One day we will meet again, and I will wait, even if it takes a thousand years."

"I wonder what love is like." Zoë sighed wistfully. "My father loved my mother. You love Hylas. Heck, even Lord Zeus loves Lady Hera!" She sighed again. "I just want to find it."

Heracles was silent for a moment before he smiled suddenly, looking very pleased with himself. "Zoë, I still owe you for helping me. And I was thinking, if I'm the 'divine protector of mankind', I'm still just one man. One man cannot protect the world but..."

"...an army can!" She finished, looking amused.

He nodded. "I'll have to clear it with my father first - if I don't want him to kill anyone who joins - but I'm sure it will be accepted. And, of course, every leader needs a lieutenant to keep order in the ranks." He looked her directly in the eyes. "I was thinking you for that position."

She smiled. "I would love to. Wouldn't want to loose the first friend I've had in centuries."

He nodded and looked out to the sea. Heracles was one step closer to being reunited to his lover, and Zoë was one step closer to finding hers.

* * *

**Yay, chapter 1 is done~!**

**Ok, it's still a Percy x Zoë fic, but there will be Heracles x Hylas in there too. Heracles and Zoë have a siblingish bond with one another, not a romantic one.**

**So review, please! I wrote this in a day because I was on FIRE with the story! Do you like the direction it is going in?**

**By the way, I had a truck load of research done to find out the historical background, and lots of it is accurate I think. Hylas was a real person, with the same relationship with Heracles but was kidnapped and seduced by nymphs. I don't know when they were actually together, so I made it up.**

**Thanks!**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	3. Chapter 2 - The Divine Army of Mankind

**Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson. That is all.**

**(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o)))**

**HOLY GREAT SACK OF POTATOES! DOES MY EYES DECEIVE ME? NAY, TIS BE TRUE, TIS BE ANOTHER CHAPTER!**

**(￣****)ゞ**

**Goodie, more responses!**

**SONxOFxCHAOS: You do? That's good. I aim to please!**

**Striking-Thunderbolt: I thought people would think that, so that's why I added the footnote about how it wasn't. To be clear, Zoë and Heracles are just going to be good friends, nothing more.**

**k1demmin: Yay, a faithful reader! Perseus will return soon, but certain events still need to take place first. I don't want to spoil it so you'll just have to wait and see~!**

**Bladecraft: Why thank you! I don't think it deserves that praise, but who am I to argue? :3**

**Legion3849: If you look at Greek Mythology, you'll find that Heracles had many lovers, both men and women, but one of the ones he actually loved was Hylas. So to answer your question, yes he is. Problem?**

**Ah, fun fun.**

**~Nom Nom :3**

* * *

**Bane of Khaos**

**Chapter 2 - The Divine Army of Mankind**

Hylas breathed deeply. His mind was clear, and he sat with his eyes closed, relaxing every muscle in his body. The world around him was calm. He was calm. He was-

"I can't do this!" He suddenly shouted, jumping up in frustration.

"Yes you can." Perseus reprimanded. "You are just not focusing enough."

"I am! You're not helping!" Hylas snapped. Perseus merely raised an eyebrow.

"You were the one who wanted this." He said. "Now you must learn how to control it."

Hylas groaned in frustration, but sat back down to attempt to focus again. Muttering foul curses under his breath, he closed his eyes again in an attempt to clear his mind.

This was his life now. Ever since Heracles accepted immortality, he himself was being taught about the importance of cause and effect. It was the importance of how one decision would effect others, how it would affect the outcome. He had been given an important job by Perseus (who he still couldn't believe was a primordial deity as he refused to be an age any older than twelve) as The Nexus.

It wasn't as it sounded. He was not a primordial deity, nor was he a god, but he was immortal. Perseus had found a loophole in the ancient laws that if Hylas could be killed, if his soul could be sent to the Underworld, he was free of all the ancient laws, and he was treated just like a demigod. So that's what Perseus did. He created a new form of immortality, where Hylad would be immortal unless he died in battle.

He became The Nexus, a warrior of Perseus, primordial deity of Creation, Destruction, Love and Fear. His job was learn how Perseus' actions would effect things, to be able to analyse anything and work out what would happen if something happened. He was a seer, but also a deductionist, working off both chance and fact. Perseus had gifted him with the ability to do so, something that no one, not even Athena herself would have.

And it was hard.

It wasn't the process that was difficult. No, he could see a situation and understand anything and everything that could possibly happen, it was the fact that it got out of hand that made it so hard. The possibilities would begin to overlap one another, steadily becoming incoherent and giving him a headache. He could process much more than he could before, but he still had a long way to go. And this had been his life, for over a thousand years.

Hylas started again. He cleared his mind from all distractions and thought of another situation. An assassin infiltrating a small castle. She was at a split corridor. If she went left (13% chance) she would encounter more guards, but would be quicker - a 3% chance for him to have moved, and a 72% chance of success. If she went right (67% chance) there would be less resistance, she would be able to steal the future plans (84% chance of success) and reach the target at a later time - a 36% of him to have moved, but a 89% chance of success. But if she doubled back (11% chance) she would need to double back for a while and would compromise the mission - 94% chance for him to have moved and a mere 45% chance of success. But if she-

"AGHH!" He shouted, as more and more 'but's, 'if's and percentages floated through is mind, overlapping and becoming distorted, and generally more confusing. He had managed to master telling the future to a degree that would make Ananke proud (but then again, he was taught by her so she was proud), but this made him feel like he was going back to square one, even though he had just started this less that a year ago, and it took about a thousand years to master his seer abilities.

"Hylas, calm yourself." Perseus said.

"No!" He snapped. "This is too hard, too much. I just want to go back to Heracles, even if the Gods themselves deny it!"

"'Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them'." Perseus said suddenly.

"Wh..."

"A mortal said it. William Shakespeare I believe. His work is - or it will be - famous beyond measure. Pity he is not born yet."

Again, Hylas was lost for words.

"But I do believe it to be correct." Perseus continued. "The gods have done this to us, the both of us. Without their interference we would be happy. You have been forced into this life, so we shall make you great." He looked directly into Hylas' eyes, showing wisdom beyond his twelve year old skin. "And the Gods say that the great deserve whatever they want. Who are we to decide against that?"

Hylas nodded - albeit rather reluctantly - and begrudgingly sat down and closed his eyes, starting the whole process yet again.

* * *

Heracles paced around the room. Currently, he was in a tent, pacing next to a wooden table which was littered with maps and pages of information. Currently, the main focus was of a small town, with a castle nearby. There was a tyrant residing there, abusing his power as ruler on the townsfolk by robbing them.

As he lead the Divine Army of Mankind (usually just called 'The Army') he was preparing for a war with tyrant and his hired mercenaries. He sent his lieutenant, Zoë Nightshade, in to avoid the war. Like their name said, their existence was to protect mankind from monsters. The tyrant, a rebel son of Hades, had summoned both the undead and monsters into his employment, and planned to spread his influence. So naturally, the Army was sent to stop it.

Thinking about the Army's responsibilities reminded Heracles of when he first offered the proposal to his father...

_He was nervous, that was for sure. It had only been a week since he had been granted immortality, but already his father was trying to get him married. Hera wasn't helping either, actually offering her daughter Hebe for the cause. In fact, all of Olympus was against him apart from Zoë (she wasn't technically on Olympus but still...), Hestia and, strangely, Aphrodite._

_Ever since the Hylas instance he refused to trust no one. Hestia was able to regain his favour by telling him that Hylas was still alive, stopping him from a meaningless suicide, but Aphrodite... He didn't understand her motives. When he confronted her, she only said one phrase that made him want to kiss her._

_"Everything pales compared to the strength of true love. Not land, not death... not even dimensions can keep the lovers apart."_

_It had actually been thanks to Aphrodite that he wasn't already married to Hebe now. She had managed to halt Zeus in his warpath, and even Hera by saying crap about "loveless marriages are bad" and such._

_So there he stood, right outside the throne room hyperventilating, panicking on the fact that if his father said no (which he wouldn't because more power to his son meant more power to him) he would have to marry the slut Hebe. He asked Artemis (whom he was on good terms with because he wouldn't "rob any more maidens of their virtue") and he knew that she wasn't as pure as she made out to be._

_The entire council was there. His father had summoned them there to witness his decision, after saying that he would only allow him to be unmarried if he had a good cause. He hoped this would count._

_"So, Heracles, my son." Zeus thundered, as Heracles bowed at his feet, internally flinching at the last words. "Have you found a cause to offer yourself to?"_

_Hera smiled smugly, confident he wouldn't._

_Heracles swallowed deeply. It was now or never. "Father, indeed I have."_

_Hera lost her smug expression and hissed venomously at him. "Pray tell, oh great hero-" She said that with sarcasm dripping from her voice. "-what this great cause."_

_"I will, but first I need an oath on the river Styx - no, an oath on Gaia herself."_

_Zeus looked at his son. He had something hidden, he could tell that he had something of value. Why else would he want an oath on Gaia, the most binding oath in existence? If it was broken, the person would be sent to Gaia for all eternity, be it immortal, mortal and even the dead._

_"How dare you demand such an oath!" Hera streaked. "Who are you to do so!?"_

_Heracles straightened up from his bow. "I am Heracles, Gatekeeper of Olympus God of heroes, sports, athletes, health, agriculture, fertility, trade, oracles and divine protector of mankind." He said with an even voice._

_"We will do it." Zeus said suddenly._

_"Why? Why should we listen to-"_

_"SILENCE WOMAN!" He boomed, his voice emphasised by thunder. "I am Zeus, God of the sky, lightning, thunder, law, order, justice and the King of the Gods! You will do as I say! All of you!"_

_The whole council nodded to his words, Artemis trying to hold back a smile._

_"What is the oath?" He asked Heracles once there was silence._

_"Everyone repeat after me." Heracles said, and quickly continued to stop Hera's protests. "I swear on the name of Gaia, the great earth mother, that I will not use the knowledge bestowed upon me this day, nor will I allow any other immortal or mortal use it apart from Lord Heracles, Gatekeeper of Olympus God of heroes, sports, athletes, health, agriculture, fertility, trade, oracles and divine protector of mankind and Lady Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, Forests and Hills and the Moon."_

_Everyone repeated the oath, giving Artemis curious glances. Once everyone completed the final word, the earth rumbled in agreement, sealing the oath._

_"Ok, I wish to know this piece of information if it requires so much safekeeping." Athena said, looking slightly annoyed by the fact she may not know it._

_"Ok. I have discovered something in the ancient laws." Heracles said. "A loophole, you may say."_

_This caught everyone's attention, even the ever drunk Dionysius. A loophole was something important, and they now knew why it was such a dire matter to keep it secret._

_"One of the laws says: 'Those outside the reach of death must follow the immortal laws'."_

_"That one?" Hera said impatiently, determined to catch him out. "There's no loophole there!"_

_"But there is, dear step-mother." He smirked making Zeus chuckle. "The words say 'those outside the reach of death' not 'those who are immortal'."_

_"So?" Ares said, not really understanding his point, but Athena's eyes lit up in recognition._

_"Of course!" She gasped. "How did I not see it before?" She eyed Heracles up. "Are you sure you're not one of mine?"_

_Heracles laughed while Zeus glared at him._

_"Will someone please enlighten the not-so-gifted with the details?" Apollo whined._

_Artemis rolled her eyes. "Remember how when someone is made immortal, first they are gifted everlasting life, then stripped of the ability to die?" Apollo nodded, face still blank. She sighed. "Stopping halfway would make them immortal - live forever - while making them keep their ability to die. This means they would be able to break the ancient laws, yet are immortal. The only downfall is that they could die in battle, but without that they wouldn't be able to break the ancient laws."_

_Apollo nodded again, understanding._

_"Then why did you stop us from being able to do so?" Ares shouted, outraged. "We could've made armies!"_

_"That's the point!" Athena growled at her half sibling. "Some of the gods would've abused the power, and our ever paranoid father here would think of it as acts of war. It wouldn't end well."_

_"But how are we sure we won't be betrayed by Heracles and Artemis?" Hera shouted._

_"How about we make a deal then?" Heracles said. "How about Artemis will only recruit women who want to keep their maiden hood and I will only recruit people who have nothing left? This way they'll be loyal to us. Also, you could use us and our recruits. Artemis could hunt for monsters roaming wild - the hunt is part of her domain - and I could protect the mortals from monsters that threaten them, living up to the 'Divine protector of mankind' part in my titles."_

_"You've thought this through." Poseidon noted, making Heracles smirk at him._

_"The council agrees." Zeus decided, nodding to Heracles. The hero-turned-god bowed once again before flashing out to the shoreline where he had been with Zoë for the past week._

_"So, how'd it go?" She asked, turning to look at Heracles. She stopped smiling, and quickly bowed to him._

_"What are you doing?" He asked annoyed. He didn't like his friends bowing to him._

_"Lady Hestia." She spoke, making Heracles turn around. Right behind him was the twelve year old form of the Goddess of the Hearth._

_"Zoë." She smiled fondly. "I've been watching you."_

_Zoë looked at her, startled. "You... You have?"_

_"Indeed, young Hesperide." She said. "I am here to offer you something I have never offered anyone."_

_"What will that be, Lady Hestia?"_

_Hestia smiled. "Enough with the bowing and the 'Lady's. Please, just call me Hestia."_

_Zoë stood up unsurely. "What is it... Hestia?"_

_The hearth goddess smiled. "That's better. I want you to become my champion."_

_Zoë looked stunned. Even Heracles was floored by this. "Your... Champion?" She whispered. "M-Me?"_

_Hestia nodded. "I've seen where your home is. He is far, and many trials separate you from him, but in the end, you will be together."_

_Heracles looked at her with shock. "How do you know this?"_

_Hestia only smiled. She placed her hand on Zoë's head and chanted a few words. Zoë glowed in a warm red light before it faded and she collapsed unconscious._

_"How do you know this?" He repeated._

_"I am Hestia, goddess of the hearth and home." She looked directly into his eyes, her normally red and burning had changed to a golden glow. "But don't forget, I am also the eldest child of Kronos and Rhea." Her eyes reverted back to normal. "Protect my champion. If she dies, someone else wouldn't be too happy. And believe me, he would make Kronos look like an ant."_

_Then she flashed away, but not in her usual column of flames, but a form of shimmering before she was just gone._

_Heracles turned back to Zoë. What was so special about her? A god could only have one champion in their whole existence, so they did not go freely. Not only that, but Hestia said that the person who wouldn't be happy if she died was amazingly powerful. And finally, she had gifted him Anaklusmos. The sword was definitely not celestial bronze, but made of something else, something more powerful._

_Just who was she?_

"I'm back."

The words snapped the divine protector of mankind out of his thoughts. He turned to see the black haired lieutenant back from her mission, her smirk portraying success. She looked the same as she had always, except she was wearing her white armour that showed her to be the lieutenant of the Army.

"No war?" He asked just to make sure.

"No war." She confirmed. He nodded.

"We're moving out then. Get everyone ready." She nodded and ran out the tent, her white armour. He sighed before flashing out to Olympus to receive the next order.

* * *

**Ok done. Shorter than I wanted but, meh.**

**Yes, I know it's a filler, but there are some pretty important parts in this chapter, that will become vital later on.**

**Tired now.**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	4. Chapter 3 - Assistance from Antaeus

**Disclaimer: Blah blah blah, disclaimer crap. Me no own Percy Jackson.**

***:.｡****. o(≧▽≦)o .｡****.:***

**Ah, I feel like crap. Got the results back from the hospital over a test they did, that I was waiting on for months. But I didn't get a straight forward answer. Nooooo, because that'd be too simple. No, I got the literal abbreviated terms, a bank load of numbers and a 'he is in pain' sentence. What, is it a magic eight ball or something? I feel like I got an 'Ask again later' option, so I'm pissed.**

**Rant over.**

**(＞人＜****;)**

**Responses! WHOO!**

**The-Nutty-Squirrel: Indeed. As you have so elegantly put, shit will go down. Why else would Perseus be involved?**

**Agent-Percy-Jackson: Thank you. Heracles is not the main character. He's like the equivalent to Grover in the books, so like a side-main character. Also, I'm trying to portray him as a person who is trying to right his past mistakes, so here's hoping it'll work!**

**Striking-Thunderbolt: Yes they are, but instead of accepting women who stay off men forever, they accept people without any ties to their old life: no celibacy involved.**

**Codex (Guest): Thank you. I decided to do some research and voila! Great options to change!**

**aesir21: You do? Ah good. I was panicking incase it seemed a bit bad. But it looks like it worked. Yay for me!**

**To everyone else: Thanks so much for the support! Yay!**

**Now... New chappie!**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: I'm not to sure about the real times involved and when it happens, so...**

**PPS: Sorry I didn't update yesterday. An update a day is too hard, so I'll try every couple of days.**

* * *

**Bane of Khaos**

**Chapter 3 - Assistance from Antaeus**

It was official: she was in love.

Nancy Sarah-Louise Bobofit was in love with Perseus 'Percy' Jackson.

It all started almost six months ago, after the winter break, when he transferred into Yancy Academy with his friend, Hylas Theiodamas. At first look he was nothing special, just a boy who kept to himself, both of them barely interacting with others. Only Grover Underwood, a crippled managed to talk to them, and even then it was only in small amounts.

So, like she did with everyone else, she bullied them - well tried to anyway. The thing was, nothing bothered them. Absolutely nothing. Not a word about their clothes (which were actually very good), not their intelligence (which was probably even higher than their teachers), and even when she insulted their sexuality, Hylas clearly stated he had a boyfriend, and Percy said he was a nice guy. So instead, she just gave up and left them alone.

It wasn't until a few months after their transfer until she noticed just how hot he was. Sure he was good looking, his black hair, unreal green eyes and naturally tanned skin making him look extremely good, but that's all she knew. Then it happened.

They were in a Maths lesson, with her favourite teacher Mrs Dodds. She always favoured Nancy and her friends, and hated Percy, Hylas and Grover. Yet, she couldn't find anything to fault Percy or Hylas, so she ended up always criticising Grover. Not that she cared but still...

Anyway, in the lesson, Mrs Dodds was reprimanding Grover for getting a single question wrong while Nancy was watching in amusement. She seemed to be madder than usual, and Nancy almost felt sorry for him, as he was trembling, barely able to drink the bottle of water he had in his hands.

"Mr Underwood, are you incapable of such a task?" She sneered at him. "You are as dumb as a goat!"

For some reason, that had a huge effect on him, making him jump up. The water left his hand, and tumbled onto the person who was sitting next him. Percy. The water poured down is front, soaking his shirt. Percy stopped working and looked down, completely unfazed.

"Mr Underwood, look what you've done." She sighed, looking slightly pleased with herself. "Honey, will you go get a clean shirt for Mr Jackson here?" Grover looked like it was the last thing he wanted to do, but a sharp glare made him stumble out.

Mrs Dodds watched closely for a moment, her expression turning grim for a split second before turning sweet.

"Honey, you should get that wet shirt off." She finally said, cocking her head to the side, like she was trying to work out a complex puzzle.

"Ok." Percy said, and began to unbutton his wet shirt. Mrs Dodds raised a surprised eyebrow, but said nothing. Hylas, who was sitting next to Percy, didn't stay quiet.

"Perseus, you do know it's looked down upon to strip in public." He said, rolling his eyes. It was always like that. Hylas never called Percy 'Percy', but 'Perseus', and he was always explaining things, like why people did things. Nancy guessed that was the reason Percy was in Yancy Academy.

When Percy took off his shirt, Nancy's (and probably everyone else's) jaw dropped. His body was perfect, way too muscled and defined for a twelve year old, and she felt like she wanted to throw herself at him. Or hide in the corner, away from him. It was strange, feeling both at once.

Alecto was confused, utterly and entirely confused. She had been sent here by Lord Hades because of a demigod child that was supposed to be a child of Poseidon. When she arrived, she couldn't sense anything, not even a child of a minor God like Nemesis or Hypnos. But then, once she focused, she could sense something. Something old, very old.

So she stayed, and studied the scent. It was difficult, with the stupid centaur and satyr dragging their scent all over the place, but she found the origin. A reclusive boy by the name of Perseus Jackson, and she discovered that his friend, Hylas Theiodamas, had the same scent, but slightly weaker.

So she observed them. Apparently they were orphans, living off money that was left for them. They weren't related, and there were no records of who was their real parents, and no records of who left them the money. It was like they didn't exist, and it made her job ten times harder.

So, over the months, she observed them. Apparently, neither the centaur nor the satyr knew who their parent/s were, and were leaning towards Poseidon, so she had to play their game. So she pretended to hate them, not that it was hard. The only problem was that she couldn't find anything to use, not a single word nor action. So she focused her frustrations on the satyr.

While observing, she couldn't place their godly parent. As far as she could see, they didn't have any control over the atmosphere, water or the shadows. They were as smart as Athena's children, but they didn't have the compulsory grey eyes. They had the looks of Aphrodite children, but they didn't have the correct scent. As far as she could tell, they didn't know of their status from the scent, and it wasn't any kind of scent she'd smelled before.

So she tried a theory. She tried dowsing Percy in water. If he was son of any of the big three, it would show. A son of Poseidon wouldn't stay wet, and a son of Hades or Zeus would feel unnaturally panicked by it. Yet neither happened, and when he removed his shirt, she felt like she wanted him, and was absolutely terrified of him. She was one of the Erinyes, and she shouldn't feel those things. She was an embodiment of fear, a punisher of false oaths, not made to feel lust or fear.

Yet this demigod made her.

And that frightened her.

* * *

Percy was at breaking point.

For six months he had sat around. For six months he was free to release his family from their various prisons. For six months he was free to overthrow and destroy the gods. Yet, for six months he had done nothing. He thought back to his... Release from Ananke and Chronos' realm...

_Percy sat watching the mortals. Times had changed, and his time with Ananke and Chronos had changed him. The five hundred years before Hylas had arrived had changed him from what he was. Away from the uniqueness of the mortals, in the blandness of Ananke's realm, it changed him. He couldn't understand the current state of the mortals. Hylas had a perfect understanding and tired to teach him, but he just couldn't understand. Now, after almost two thousand years of Hylas trying to convince him, he realised nicknames were of the norm._

_Then he felt it. The final seal, the final requirement for him to return had happened. The theft had occurred, and he was now able to free his family._

_"You have more alliesss then you think." Ananke hissed from behind him._

_He was used to her knowing exactly what he was thinking and what he was going to do. Her words were not just advice, they were fact._

_"What do you mean?"_

_"There isss a battle approaching." She said. "The final battle to all immortalsss. A power too great can be easssily crussshed, but a power so vassst cannot be besssted. An ally isss of the oldessst, but he oldest isss not an ally. Ssshe neither watchesss in touch or sssight, but watchesss in ssstrength and might."_

_He thought about that. More riddles. Lovely._

_"Now young one, before we part, I do believe a prophecy isss in order._

_The home, the prince and the knight,_

_Will hide creation from all sssight._

_The ancient powersss that were misssed,_

_Love in chainsss in the great abysss._

_Blood of the king to break the ssseal,_

_Dessstroy the curssse of the heel."_

_Before Percy could react, Ananke snapped her fingers and suddenly he was standing in front of a class of twelve year old children. Blinking, he glanced to his left and say Hylas, obviously as shocked as he was, in his twelve year old form._

_"...students Perseus Jackson and Hylas Theiodamas!" An old man from his right was saying. He was in a wheelchair wearing a tweed suit, but one glance and Percy knew instantly it was Chiron, the hero trainer. He was one of the worst immortals in Percy's opinion, as he always told the gods the secrets of the heroes. He was the one who told Zeus about Hylas._

_"Would you like to say a few words?" He asked, obviously expecting them to do so._

_"No." Percy said, making Hylas snigger and most of the class to giggle. Chiron looked taken aback. Percy just looked curiously at the reactions of the class._

_"Er... Right. Sit down and we will start." Chiron muttered, moving his wheelchair to the board._

That was six months ago. Six months. Ananke warned him that Khaos, the greatest enemy to him and his family, would know and find him of he used his powers, that only with 'the home, the prince and the knight' could he use it to his fullest extent. He suspected small uses of his powers would be acceptably, but anything large would not.

And, in all his time there, he hadn't spoke to his mother once.

Like most children of Gaia, he had inherited certain powers. As being the firstborn, he had inherited it slightly stronger than her other children, but it was still weak compared to his other powers, and it presented like demigod powers. A perfect cover.

Yet, whenever he touched the earth, he could feel her. He would always know where she was, and could talk to her whenever he felt like, but now she was in a deep slumber inside the earth, suddenly very far away from him. He could feel one of his brothers, Antaeus, in the Labyrinth, but they hadn't really spoken, only confirmed his allegiance to him and acceptance to stay quiet.

And his father... He didn't know what had happened to Tartarus. He knew they had been trapped long before, but he didn't expect no communication. He couldn't go to the Underworld to get close enough to talk to him without Hades noticing, and his mother was too far asleep for talking. So all he had was Hylas.

For six months Hylas had wanted to run to his love. Ever since they arrived six months ago, he had just wanted to run to the Empire State Building, onto Mount Olympus and reunite himself with Heracles. Yet, three things were stopping him.

One: he looked twelve years old. He still looked the same, but was younger and could pass off as his own brother - or a descendent. He knew that Heracles knew the truth about his death - Perseus told him that, but refused anything else. So he was clueless if Heracles knew he was still alive, which was a big problem.

Two: announcing his presence to Heracles would be announcing both himself and Perseus to the whole immortal world. While that wouldn't endanger them, it would compromise the plan, something that had years in the making. He was sure Perseus wouldn't be pleased with him if he destroyed this chance for his family, and even though they were friends, he didn't want to anger him.

And three: he was scared. Scared of Heracles rejecting him. Scared of The Divine Army of Mankind rejecting him. Scared being expected of. Scared of Heracles abandoning his army to be with him. He was scared of so many things that the mere thought scared him now, and he though that his head may implode.

So he did nothing, and waited.

* * *

It was the day of a school trip - of the sort anyway. Percy and Hylas had discussed long into the night, and had decided upon a plan of action that would cause Chiron and Grover to bring them to their Camp immediately. It wasn't perfect, so many things could go wrong, but it imposed the fact that they (in the eyes of Chion, Grover and one of the Erinyes anyway) were more than a minor god's child, but something else entirely.

The day started as usual. They stayed separate from their 'class' on the bus and as far as they could without drawing suspicion in the museum. Grover the satyr attempted to talk to them, and a red haired girl was trying (and failing) to flirt with Percy.

Everything was fine as they walked down (their) memory lane, looking at the immortals they knew, Hylas making comments like "She's a slut" and "He was taller" etcetera etcetera, until they reached the relic that depicted Kronos eating his children.

"Mr Jackson, would you care to explain this piece to us?" Chiron called from his wheelchair in front of the crowd. Percy knew it was a plot by him to make him know or recognise something that could prove fatal to a demigod.

"Not really." Percy said, making Hylas elbow him in the stomach. "I mean yes. It is Kronos consuming his children, correct?"

Chiron nodded, slightly pleased. "Yes indeed. Will you share with us why he did so?"

"Because they are pompous bastards."

Chiron, Grover and 'Mrs Dodds' (really Alecto) shifted nervously while the rest of the children laughed. Thunder boomed overhead making the three wince. It didn't escape their attention, however, that he said 'are' and not 'were'.

"C-Can you give us the true reason Mr Theiodamas?" Chiron said in a higher octave.

"'Cos of all that power crap." Hylas said. "Kronos believed a lie his father told him so he ate his kids - a shitty move - until Rhea and tricked him. Yada yada yada, the 'pompous bastards'-" Hylas said, using his fingers as air quotes. "-beat him. Some shit happened after that, and bastards 1 though 5 kicked Hestia off the Olympian Council for the drunk."

All the way through this speech, the three non-mortals winced and cringed at every insult, and thunder boomed angrily overhead.

"Well thank you for your opinion, but yes what happened was..." Chiron continued to portray the 'grand' victory of the gods with so much brown nose that Hylas was surprised he was a white centaur, not a brown one. By the end of his speech, the sky had calmed from its thunder fit.

"...go outside for lunch, shall we?" Chiron finished.

Outside, sitting by the fountain, Percy and Hylas was preparing. Antaeus was to come with many of his monster cronies to attack them - about fifty in all - and even though they didn't like the three non-mortals with them, they couldn't let the mortals be harmed. Percy had talked to Antaeus and, after a quick chat, he was all to pleased to help after he heard the plan. Also the fact that any monsters killed were going to reform back in the Labyrinth within a week was helpful.

Then, as the red haired girl dumped the remainder of her lunch onto Grover the satyr, the earth began to rumble. It was only slightly, so people just carried on as normal, but it was the sign of the start. Percy lightly touched the fountain's edge, creating a Greek Delta sign on it, and stood up with Hylas, as if to stretch their legs.

As soon as the Delta symbol was formed, the fountain stopped working, it's water going still. Then, the entire fountain cracked in half, directly down the centre, and opened to reveal a large cavern filled with Antaeus and many other monsters, including the Minotaur, a Hydra and over twenty Hellhounds.

The three non-mortals froze at the sight of the monsters, while the mortals were muttering things about a 'street performance'.

Antaeus looked over at Percy and Hylas, and winked. "Kill the demigods!" He roared, causing the monsters to charge at them.

Both Hylas and Percy sprung to action, and in a second pulled out weapons that were 'gifts' from their godly parents: Hylas a large pair of golden scissors while Percy a small black rock.

Hylas ran into the charging monsters first. He wielded his scissors like duel blades, killing two Hellhounds either side of him before jumping onto the head of a third. Percy discretely directed their essences to Antaeus' lair before charging in.

Percy straight away honed in onto the Hydra. Transforming his black stone into a long sword, he charged at it, swiping at a Hellhound and dodging Antaeus' mace. He expertly jumped onto an Empousa's head, using as a springboard to reach the Hydra's many heads.

Channeling molten lava into his sword, Percy made a large swipe, successfully cutting and searing two of the monster's heads. Landing on one of the stumps, Percy lengthened the sword to a whip, and swiped it around him. The wafer thin whip easily dispatched the rest of the Hydra's heads and seared the stumps shut, making it start to crumble into golden dust.

Jumping back down to the earth, Percy noticed that Hylas had managed to clear all the minor monsters, and was currently having a showdown with the Minotaur, leaving Antaeus to him.

"So what demigod..." Antaeus false-sneered. "If you have bested a Hydra and all my other warriors. I am the son of Gaia and Poseidon! You cannot defeat me!"

Percy changed in and made a feeble swipe to the Giant, making a shallow cut across his left leg. No blood leaked out, only sand, and more sand from the earth raised up to heal it. Percy faked surprise while Antaeus laughed.

"Foolish demigod! I am protected by my mother!"

Percy did a weak play against him, making a few shallow cuts and narrowly dodging his mace, before he let himself get hit. He flew across the 'battlefield' and slammed into Hylas, who had just finished off with the Minotaur, causing both of them to collapse to the ground.

Antaeus began to say something, but stopped and stared at Percy in surprise. Even for a Giant, he was a good actor.

The earth around Percy began to wrap itself around him, in an almost cocoon like state, but like a wetsuit. After about ten seconds, it disintegrated, leaving Percy perfectly fine.

"Brother..." Antaeus hissed. "I do not wish to fight family."

With that, he jumped into the cavern before the Labyrinth sealed itself shut.

Alecto, Chiron and Grover were frozen in shock. They had just watched two demigods fight against a Giant, Hydra, the Minotaur, and hordes of Hellhounds and Empousa and survive. Not only that, Percy had displayed characteristics of being a demigod child of Gaia.

They were still in a state of shock when the two came over to speak with them.

"I think we need to go." Percy said.

For the first time in history, Alecto and Chiron agreed on the same thing.

* * *

**And there it is!**

**Sorry for the delay, I just wanted it perfect, and it was my first fight (however little it was) so please tell me how I did!**

**Also, rhyming is hard...**

**Sneak peak for next time: Modern day the Divine Army of Mankind.**

**Until then...**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	5. Chapter 4 - A Not So Warm Welcome

**Disclaimer: *Insert witty pun about not owning the Percy Jackson books here***

**(＞人＜****;)**

**OMG OMG OMG! Over 70 follows! Over 55 favourites! OMG I LOVE YOU ALL!**

**So so so so so so sorry for the delay! This chapter was extremely hard to write, as I needed it so the next few chapters would work out the right way. So, yeah...**

**The-Nutty-Squirrel: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. SHIT WILL GO DOWN, MAYBE THIS CHAPTER MAYBE NEXT, JUST READ TO FIND OUT. YAY. And doctors are SO PITAs. :3**

**aesir21: I don't really know what you mean. If you mean that 'furies' are being autocorrected to 'Erinyes', I want them to be named that. Furies is Roman while Erinyes is the Greek collective name. I think.**

**k1demmin: Yes, he created it, then opened it. Also, he will be claimed, but who says Gaia has to do it? He is the primordial deity of Creation after all...**

**To the others: Sorry for not doing individual ones, but they'd justly look like a copy and paste. So here it is to everyone: Thank you! I love praise (even if I think I don't deserve it).**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: Please bare in mind that the insults said are insults that I believe people would say to each other. I do not mean anything said, but if you take offence, you're stupid. You obviously stupid if you deduce my morals and thoughts towards something based off an insult I used for a character that DOESN'T reflect me. Seriously, if you do, just grow up...**

* * *

**Bane of Khaos**

**Chapter 4 - A Not So Warm Welcome**

The Army were heading to camp. Their leader, Heracles, had received some... Peculiar news (curtesy of Artemis). News that had Zeus himself ordering both The Army and The Hunt back to camp. The last time that had happened was when a son of Oceanus was claimed in camp, making the gods panic until Heracles offered him a place in The Army. That was over 300 years ago.

The Army itself had shrunk over the years. Because of recent "Laws", less and less people were feeling abandoned by others, shrinking their recruitable audience. Lately, however, they had managed to allow people who seek freedom and adventure to join.

Currently they were traveling with the elite of The Army - only seven people (including Heracles himself), but all had proved they were the best of the best. All remained the eternal age of teenagers, from 15-18 years of age, the peak of their ability.

First there was Zoë Nightshade, his lieutenant, daughter of Atlas and Pleione, champion of Hestia. She had been there since the beginning, training the troops from everything she had learned, from a bow and arrow to a great sword.

Second was Clarisse Nightshade, the adopted sister of Zoë. The demigod daughter of Ares was the second oldest in The Army, being born at the collapse of Greek Civilisation. Abandoned at birth, she was forced to learn how to survive in the crumbling world, until Zoë found her and took her under her wing. Ares was forever grateful, thus blessing Zoë and fully backing The Army for taking in his favourite daughter.

Third was Luana Di Lodovico. She was a daughter of Athena and Michelangelo Di Lodovico, and was abandoned by her father after he pursued his artwork in the early 15th century. As there was no proof of her birth and her connection to Michelangelo, she was forced to the streets until she joined The Army (whilst guided by Athena) and became the brains behind the operation after being blessed by Minerva, her mother's Roman equivalent.

Fourth was Pacific Jedem. Born in the late 18th century, the son of Oceanus was the first demititan for over a millennium. His mother, Jonine Jedem, was a slave who knew who Oceanus was and named her son in his honour. She was murdered by her 'owner' after she refused to let Pacific work at the age of six. The gods found him at the age of nine, when he was street performing with powers stronger than a son of Poseidon could possess. He joined The Army after Heracles vouched for him, and married Clarisse not long after his 19th birthday.

Fifth was Louise Waterskate, daughter of Hecete. Born in 1902, she was orphaned in the first mortal World War from her father and step-mother. She was brought into The Army by Luana, after Hecete herself asked Heracles nor his assistance. Because Louise was very gifted with her mother's magic, she became one of the strongest demigod children ever to be born out of the minor gods.

Lastly was Nico Di Angelo, son of Hades. Born in 1924, Nico joined The Army after being brought there by Alecto of the Erinyes, after both his mother and sister died from Zeus. He became one of the best fighters in The Army, and could provide support through the expendable skeletons he can summon.

Overall, the elite group operated more like a family than an army, their status in The Army mainly used to control the rest of it.

Zoë appeared out of a column of flame in front of the group. Being the champion of Hestia gave her strong manipulation over fire and the ability to know where someone's home is, but also gave her control over some very shocking areas that Hestia hid very well. No one out of the elite group knew that if Hestia wanted to, she could bring the whole of Olympus to their knees.

Currently, Zoë was conflicted. She had quickly traveled to camp to see what the commotion and urgency was, and found out that it was over the arrival of an insanely strong demigod that may be a Demi-primordial. Yet his friend drew her eye, not because of his looks, but because of something else. She told Heracles this, that she knew Hylas was alive, but she didn't tell him that about six months ago he moved, to somewhere in reach. And now she had found him, found her best friend's lover after thousands of years.

Yet, something compelled her not to.

The boy with Hylas. One look at the twelve year old made her stop. He was there, in the camp with Chiron and the other campers, but she was spotted. Not only that, he looked at her and put a finger to his lips, as if to tell her to stay quiet, before flicking his wrist and sending her back. Even the hidden power she had received from Hestia didn't halt him.

He was powerful, and even though it should've scared her, it didn't. And that in itself scared her.

"Zoë." Heracles greeted her when she returned. "Did you find out what we're needed for?"

She nodded. "Two children have arrived at the camp."

"Their parentage?" He asked.

"One is assumed to be the demi-child of Gaia."

He was quiet for a moment. "And the other...?"

"Undecided, from what I could tell."

He nodded and smiled at her. He could tell she was keeping something to herself, but he let it go. He had learnt the hard way that pushing wouldn't do anything.

Zoë, on the other hand, realised why she didn't want to tell. The boy played a small part, but actually seeing Heracles showed her that it wasn't fear of the boy, it was fear of what Hylas could do. Would Heracles disband The Army for his lover? Would he condemn all the members to the loneliness that they had tried to escape form?

Only time would tell, and she hoped that they wouldn't meet just yet, so they could stay a family, even if it was just for a week longer...

* * *

Percy and Hylas sat quietly in the minivan. They were being taken to Camp Half-Blood by Argus (the false Giant) who had been lurking in the shadows near Chiron. Alecto, after realising the predicament, unfroze shortly after their announcement and scowled at them before disappearing into the shadows. Chiron left to inform the gods, leaving Grover with the two not-so-demigods.

"So..." Grover bleated warily. "You're both half-bloods, eh?"

They just looked at him, making his throat feel dry. He shifted nervously, suddenly regretting sitting with them. He heard Hylas sigh and mutter "Stupid goat.", grabbing his attention. He was now looking out the window, looking bored, while Percy sat unusually still, his eyes unfocused.

So, for the rest of the journey, they were silent, Hylas moving like a normal demigod while Percy sat eerily still, as if he didn't even suffer from ADHD. Actually, now that Grover thought about it, when they had transferred, it had said that only Hylas had ADHD, not Percy.

That revelation was halted when Thalia's Pine Tree was spotted, reminding Grover of his past failures. The van slowed to a stop, and the three teenagers exited.

Grover warily walked up the hill, his head twisting and turning to every direction, as if expecting an attack. Hylas strode up confidently, while Percy just eyed the tree with interest. When they reached the border, Grover stopped, slightly confused.

"We rarely get this far without another attack." He muttered. "Maybe because we acted fast...?"

A few campers nearby saw the arrivals. Word spread like wildfire and within minutes, the whole camp was coming to see the new demigods who Chiron had left personally for over six months to watch.

Hylas watched the arriving group warily, while Percy just stared at the tree. Hylas could determine the hierarchy of the camp with only a glance. There were two main groups, one substantially larger than the other. The larger one was lead by a Percy-look-alike, except he was older, his eyes was a sea-green colour, his hair not as dark and his tan not as natural. Behind him was a full array of blondes, brunettes and redheads, lots holding similar features to one another.

The second, smaller group was led by a tall blonde with blue eyes, a notable scar on his face. The group behind him consisted of a small blonde girl with grey eyes (a daughter of Athena, Hylas guessed), a few who had similar traits (his half-siblings Hylas assumed), while the rest had features that didn't match the rest of the campers (children of the minor gods).

But when Hylas looked into the future, to see how things would proceed, before implementing his plan.

"So these are the ones who created the stir..." The Percy-look-alike said. "I'm Achilles Honour son of Poseidon, but you can call me Les."

Hylas noticed his attempt to ignore the other group. "I'm Hylas Theiodamas. This is..." He turned around to Percy, who was still looking at the tree. "...an idiot who just stares at trees, apparently. PERCY!"

Percy turned and looked at everyone. "They call me Perseus Jackson."

Hylas sighed and put a hand over his eyes. He had just gotten used to calling him Percy. "That's not how you should introduce yourself..."

Percy cocked his head to the side. "Then how should I have proceeded?"

"How about something like 'Hi I'm Percy' or a 'Hello!' at least!"

Percy's eyes scanned the crowds. "For this group, my answer was satisfactory." He turned back to studying the tree.

"Sorry 'bout Percy, he kinda has... A problem, yes let's leave it like that." Hylas looked towards the segmented crowds. "Ok, so how about-"

"This tree is alive."

Silence greeted this statement.

"Yes, because trees generally aren't alive." Les sneered. "You should leave the retard, Hylas."

"Hey, don't insult him!" Hylas snapped back.

"Ooh..." One of the bulky kids behind Les said (a son of Ares, Hylas noted). "Are you a faggot with him?"

"Terry, that's uncalled for!" Said the daughter of Athena behind the blond boy.

"What does 'faggot' mean?" Percy asked.

"It means gay." 'Terry' sneered.

"Oh, you mean homosexual?" Percy asked.

"Yes..." The daughter of Athena said.

"How is that an insult?" He asked. "Homosexuality has been around since before man. Many great people were homosexual. Heracles was, so was Zeus and Apollo, even Poseidon from time to time. Why would what happened between Hylas and his male lover concern you?"

Everyone was gobsmacked, even the children of Athena had trouble keeping up with him. Les was red in the face in anger, from the insult to his father, and he stormed off back to the camp, dragging his group with him. The rest followed, until only the two blondes were left.

"So are you going to introduce yourselves?" Hylas said, raising an eyebrow.

The girl went first. "Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena."

"Luke Castellan... Son of Hermes." He said, slightly wincing at the last part.

Annabeth started. "So, what did Perseus-"

"Percy." Hylas corrected.

She blushed. "Sorry. What did Percy mean?"

"I meant that this tree is alive." Percy said. "Too much power is stored here." Gently resting a hand on the bark, he closed his eyes for a moment. "It is a girl. A demigod, a daughter if Zeus."

Both had gone white. "How... How did you know?" Luke asked in a whisper.

"'The desire of knowledge, like the thirst for riches, increases ever with the acquisition of it.'" Percy quoted.

"Laurence Sterne." Annabeth said.

"Indeed, Annabeth." He said, opening his eyes and removing his hands. "In three days, come back here." With that, he walked off down to the big house in the camp.

After a moments silence, Annabeth breathed. "He sounds like a god." She whispered.

"You never know what others are hiding." Hylas said, looking meaningly at Luke, who gulped nervously, before following his friend.

Annabeth looked between the two suspiciously before running back to camp.

* * *

Chiron stood nervously in the throne room of the gods. He had always held he power to summon an emergency court (which only the twelve Olympians themselves could do), but this was the second time he had used it. The only other time was when he discovered Pacific, son of Oceanus 300 years ago.

It took twenty minutes, but the whole council (plus Hades and Hestia) had assembled before him, most looking annoyed while Athena looked worried (probably remembering the last time he had done that).

"Chiron." Zeus greeted neutrally. "What caused you to demand court?"

"Lord Zeus, I believe we have a significant problem." He stated.

"Which is...?" Hera tapped impatiently. She had never liked centaurs, no matter how different Chiron was to his almost-kinsmen.

"Two half-bloods have arrived at camp."

Ares snorted. "'Cause that never happens." Aphrodite frowned disapprovingly.

"One of them is undecided, but the other one..." Chiron took a deep breath. "The other one is most likely a demigod child of Gaia herself." Chiron proceeded to tell the council of the arrival of Antaeus and the Giant's retreat.

Silence greeted his words. The gods shifted nervously until Zeus and Poseidon exchanged a few words.

"That would make sense." Zeus said slowly. When a few eyebrows of the other gods were raised, he elaborated. "At the winter solstice, both Poseidon and I witnessed a theft. I am willing to think that Hades did too." Hades nodded stiffly. "What was stolen was my Thunderbolt, Poseidon's Trident and..."

"My Helm of Darkness." Hades supplied.

"But how were they stolen?" Hephaestus asked. "Divine weapons cannot be held by someone of mortal blood without incineration."

"He is a son of Gaia." Athena said. "Many ancient laws involving demigods does not include him. The blood of Gaia protects him."

"Then we kill him." Dionysius said. "Make it so one less brat is in that camp."

"Stupid." Hestia said, surprising everyone.

"Sister..." Zeus said carefully. She may not be on the council, but she was still one of the oldest gods in attendance, second only to Aphrodite. "What do you mean?"

"Gaia has never had a half-blood child before." Hestia smiled. "Not only that, she is fiercely protective of her children, even in her sleep. You said Antaeus refused to fight him. Think of all the children of Gaia, their combined power. If you manage to even hurt her favourite son, do you think his siblings would allow it?"

"They are imprisoned!" Hera said loudly. "They do not have the power-"

"Don't think for a moment, dear sister, that we are more powerful than them!" Hestia hissed.

"She's right." Artemis said. "Take Typhon for instance. It took all thirteen of us to just put him to sleep, and that was just barely. If we handle this wrong, the child could go against us all. With both Gaia and her children behind him..." She shivered.

Zeus sighed. "My daughter is right. Chiron, when the child is claimed, send him on a quest. Any quest will do. We need to see if he is trustworthy." Chiron nodded. "We will be watching very closely." He turned to Artemis. "Contact Heracles and tell him to bring The Army to camp. Do the same with The Hunt." She nodded.

"I want everyone to keep an eye on them. Dismissed!" Zeus clapped his hands and vanished, shortly followed by the rest of the council. Hestia approached Chiron.

"Just step into the flames, and it will take you to camp." She said with a smile. He nodded, and walked into the impossibly-tall flames of the hearth.

The whole camp had been summoned by Chiron to the amphitheatre. Hylas and Percy were sitting next to Luke, with a clear divide between his and Les' group. Both were in seep thought.

Hylas was thinking about his plan. By the pine tree, he mentally told Percy to behave slightly differently, more socially ignorant than usual, while h behaved more carefree than usual. It had worked, and they were now on Luke's side.

Percy was thinking of the council that he had witnessed. They wanted him to go on a quest to prove his 'loyalty' to them, once he was claimed. He was going to do that in the midst of Chiron's introduction, after already informing Hylas. Movement in the trees near the fire caught his attention. A girl, around 16 years old, was there, blending in the darkness. She was working with the earth, using it to cloak her presence, but he noticed her. They locked eyes for a moment, before he put his finger to his mouth and flicked his wrist, sending her away.

"Campers!" Chiron announced, quelling all noise. "We have received two new campers today!" He gestured to both Percy and Hylas to stand next to him, so they did. "Meet Perseus Jackson and Hylas Theiodamas!"

"Parentage?" Someone called from behind Les.

Chiron opened his mouth to speak, but stopped when two symbols floated above their heads. Above Percy was the whole earth, in all it's glory, with the land masses shifting and cracking, showing the magma underneath. Above Hylas was three pairs of hands: one holding a ball of yarn, another knitting it, and the last one holding a pair of ornate golden scissors.

Chiron stepped back quickly, as did the whole camp. "All hail Perseus Jackson, son of Gaia, mother of earth and Hylas Theiodamas, fate weaver of the Moirai, rulers of destiny."

Everyone looked incredibly nervous, but Hylas noticed that one of Luke's eyes flickered gold for a split second, making him smile inwardly. Their true identities was made known to the right side...

* * *

**Ok here are important bits:**

**1- Clarisse is old. It is important. Duh.**

**2- Nico didn't go into the Lotus Casino, and his sister, Bianca, died with his mother. Also about his birth year... I have no clue when he was born. Apparently he was born in 1924 in the Camp-Half Blood Wiki, so that's what I'm using.**

**3- The romance between Zoë and Percy will take a little time. This will follow the first book (ish), disregard the second (and weakest) book, before starting in the third book where things will REALLY spice up... Just wait until then! :3**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	6. Chapter 5 - When You Piss off the Gods

**Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson. I would say I own the Greek myths, but I don't want to be zapped by Zeus...**

**(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*****)o)))**

**IMPORTANT:**

**Ok I'm sorry for the delay, but I've been revising for my exams. Because of my illness, I've missed lots of school and now I need to catch up, so I have very little time for anything. I'm sorry, but don't expect any frequent updates for this story until at least the end of June. Sorry.**

**|(￣****3￣****)|**

**I think my brain may have exploded. Over 105 Favourites and 120 Follows. I mean, holy hopping hippo I'm happy!**

**Athena2000: Zoë wasn't betrayed by Heracles and is not in The Hunt, and thus has no illogical hatred of men. But will she hate Percy? Hmm, you'll see...**

**aesir21: Ah, Les is indeed the typical arrogant brother (even though Percy isn't actually his brother because he is not a son if Poseidon), but yeah, that's how I wanted him to be portrayed. Yay!**

**Guest: Thank you. About my update schedule... I don't really have one. I update as it comes to me, may take a few days or upwards of two weeks. I don't like spewing half-arse chapters, sorry about that.**

**Guest: Make it Percabeth? Are you crazy? Read my profile info about Percy x Annabeth pairings. This is Percy x Zoë. That's it.**

**CDOwen: Oh, thank you! That makes me happy! Ok, about the relationship between the Primordial deities... Chronos, Ananke and Khaos are siblings. Gaia, Tartarus, Erebus and Nyx are children of only Khaos. Perseus is son of Gaia and Tartarus, and Typhon is a creation of Perseus'. Hylas is the equivalent to Perseus' champion (but he isn't). Wow that's confusing... I know most of it wasn't like that in the real myths, but this is a story. :3**

**k1demmin: Sorry about that. What you said made perfect sense, and it'll be explained in this chapter... I hope...**

**To the rest: Thank you for your support! Some have asked questions that I can't answer without spoiling the story. So sorry for that, and I'll just leave you with your suspicions!**

**~Nom Nom :3**

* * *

**Bane of Khaos**

**Chapter 5 - When You Piss off the Gods...**

The whole camp watched the two new demigods (well one new demigod and a fate weaver) with suspicion. The claiming symbols faded above their heads, and it seemingly snapped the campers out of their frozen trance.

"Well what are you waiting for?" Les said venomously. "Chiron, Argus, get them out of camp!" Lots of the campers behind him loudly agreed.

"You can't do that!" Annabeth shouted, outraged.

"Yes we can!" Shouted a blonde haired boy from behind Les. "They will follow in the footprints of their parents!"

"Malcolm!" Annabeth said, shocked. "You as a child of Athena should know better! If we go by that logic we shouldn't trust Lord Zeus, Lord Poseidon or Lord Hades - even Chiron himself for being sons of Kronos!"

Luke took over. "We can't blame the faults of the parents on the children." He said. "We should give them a chance."

"Yes indeed, that is what the gods said too." Chiron said. "Mr D has authorised a quest for them and one-"

"Hell no!" Les fumed, interrupting the centaur's speech. "I've been waiting three years! If Luke didn't screw up his quest two years ago, I'd been chosen!"

At the mention of the quest, Luke's eyes darkened.

"It is the will of the gods." Chiron said. "But, if you had let me finish, I was going to say they would be allowed one companion."

Les straightened up. "If I must, I'll go with them to protect the brats." Hylas snorted. "What's he doing?" Les hissed.

"I suspect he is attempting not to laugh, and thus causing pressure in his throat which is released through a snort." Percy stated clearly. "My own estimate on the cause would be that you believe that you will accompany us upon the quest, a detail I myself find quite humorous. You must know, however, that you will not accompany us upon this quest, as I personally find your company rather vexatious and monotonous."

Everyone was quiet for a moment before Hylas burst out laughing. Annabeth snorted and many of the Athenian campers snickered, even some of the ones behind Les.

Looking at Les' confused face Percy sighed. "Apparently he is quite dim too."

Before Les could respond, Chiron interrupted him. "That's enough, campers! Percy, you shall visit the Oracle. Hylas, you will wait at the big house for him, and decide the third member of your quest after receiving the prophecy."

Everyone nodded - unable to argue with Chiron's hard tone - and dispersed into camp.

Percy and Hylas managed to reach the big house before coming face to face with a problem: Dionysius. The god was sitting on the porch with a scowl directed at the son of Gaia.

"Well, of it isn't the brats who's caused so much trouble." He sneered. "Perry and Hyla, was it?"

"I am not a platypus!" Percy protested.

"Oh he knows us!" Hylas mock-gushed. His face turned sour, and he eyed the god and sniffed the air. "Hmm, let's see... Shabby clothes, smells like a brewery... Must be the prick of the drunk god, stuck here 'cause he couldn't keep it in his pants. Not like the others are better, even your bitch-of-a-stepmother is probably easy when you get through her 'barriers'."

A couple of gobsmacked campers had gathered around them; Les, Luke and Annabeth being among them. Thunder boomed threateningly overhead, but both Percy and Hylas remained unfazed. Dionysius, however, winced from the raw fury that both the king of gods and his wife showed.

"That's rich." Dionysius said. He didn't know why, but the children intimidated him. Even though they couldn't do anything yet, words could still do damage. "What about your mother, Percy? Such a slut. How many siblings do you have?"

Percy, who had been relatively uninterested since the Perry comment, froze at the mention of his mother. Les, who had (begrudgingly) been impressed by Hylas' stand to the wine god, laughed. "Aww, the wittle baby can't handle talk of his mommy?" He baby-talked.

Percy turned his head, and Les looked into his eyes and saw... Hell. No, Hell was nothing compared to what he saw. He'd rather spend a lifetime in Tartarus next to Kronos himself than to have looked into those eyes.

What he saw was the epitome of fear. In just one second he saw a lifetime of death, torture and pain. Monsters - both real and fiction - performed unimaginable things on victims. He wanted to cry, to vomit, to curl up in a ball, to run away, to beg for mercy... To just die so he could never see those things again.

The campers and gods alike watched as Les looked into Percy's eyes for just a moment before his knees buckled and he collapsed to the floor. He had wet himself, was crying and was shaking vigorously on the floor, a broken boy.

Dionysius watched as the son of Poseidon collapsed to the son of Gaia's gaze. He knew what had happened - after all he had used it many times before on campers. It was a 'Realm Gaze' as he called it (not bothering to learn the correct name), when a god showed a mortal their realm. Yet, such a severe reaction was rare, even by god standards. The only other god to prompt such an extreme reaction was Hestia, and that was when she showed mortals their 'home' or whatever.

Poseidon teleported to his son in a sea breeze (so not to incinerate the nearby mortals) with a face of thunder. He opened his mouth, only to freeze as he looked into Percy's eyes. He may have only caught a small glimpse of it, but it was enough for the god to take a step back.

"Now if you would excuse me, I will go see the Oracle." Percy said in a quiet voice, before walking away and into the house.

He made his way to the attic, up through a trap door, to see the room filled with the remnants of past quests. He ignored the items and focused on the shrivelled woman sitting by the window. She turned to look at him, and opened her mouth.

"_Come speak, Lord Perseus, to the Oracle of Delphi, in union with Lady Ananke._" She rasped out, her voice echoing eerily from many places at once. "_Fear not the prying eyes, for they can be fooled by words of lies._"

Percy nodded, thinking hard. Even though he got the prophecy from Ananke herself, the one she gave he had came to realise it depicted the final battle of the war, and the stages leading to it, so he had no idea where to start. His original plan was to enter the camp and find the thief, but it turned out that said thief was integrated completely in camp, and with the camp in lockdown, they couldn't get the weapons without drawing suspicion. Heck, even his little stunt outside could be a problem, but he could play it down to being a son of Gaia. So this could be a perfect opportunity to find the starting point.

"Where do I begin?"

The Oracle smiled - well tried to anyway - and green fog drifted out its mouth. It laced the floor and four figures raised up from the fog: Ananke, Hylas, Heracles and the woman - Zoë, lieutenant of The Army.

When she spoke, her voice echoed from all directions, amplified.

"_You shall go west and meet the god who has rebelled._" Heracles started.

"_And find what was stolen and take it where the darkness dwelled._" Hylas continued.

"_You ssshall betray one who had called you friend._" Ananke hissed, her own voice overpowering the Oracle's.

"_But shan't reveal your true allegiance, in the end._" Zoë finished in the Oracle's voice, before all four forms dissipated.

* * *

Hylas was deep in thought. The ancient laws protected both himself and Percy, but for how long? The gods couldn't raise a finger against them when they were bound in a mortal quest, but what about once it was done? It was going so well too: they had managed to somewhat contact Kronos, receive their quest and made it though their claiming without harm (it was an added bonus that the gods thought Gaia was at work, even though Percy technically claimed himself). Then Les and Dionysius, and their big mouths, causing Percy pain over his mother. It was a miracle that he didn't snap there and then and ruin the whole plan. But he didn't, and that was the good thing.

Percy appeared in the doorway of the big house, looking like he normally did.

"Well?" Dionysius asked, half impatient and half wary of the son of Gaia.

"We leave now, and we shall take Annabeth, daughter of Athena." Percy announced, before walking to the camp boundary.

"M-Me?" Annabeth spluttered, obviously thrilled. Everyone turned to Hylas. Apparently it was his job to answer.

"'Course!" He laughed. "We need the daughter of thinking at all that jazz."

Annabeth looked insulted. "I have you know she is Goddess of Wisdom, Warfare, Divine intelligence, Architecture-"

"Blah blah blah." Hylas waved off. "Don't care, just pack your shit and come to the tree when you're ready." She nodded, glaring at him, before rushing off to get what in needed. The two gods had already flashed away, and most the campers had already left. Catching Luke's eye, he nodded fractionally. Wordlessly, he rushed off after Annabeth.

Both Percy and Hylas waited a good 10 minutes before Annabeth rejoined them, holding a bag and a pair of winged shoes, her cheeks red. "Luke says these'll help..." She muttered, thrusting them to Percy, who put them on.

They were silent for a few hours, until Annabeth snapped. They were waiting at a bus stop, Hylas kicking an apple about, waiting for a bus to take them west. They had been dropped off in New York by Argus about ten minutes ago, and had waited for the bus since.

"What are we doing?" She asked them, mainly aiming at Percy.

"Waiting for a bus." Hylas stated, not even stopping his game.

"I mean in the quest!" She exploded. "We have no plan, you almost ran off with no money, clothes or even any ambrosia or nectar, I'm here... What are we doing?"

"'Patience is the companion of wisdom.'" Percy said, still in deep thought.

"Saint Augustine..." She looked over to Hylas. "What is with him and all these quotes?"

"He just does that." He shrugged. "It's just something he picked up. Thank the gods it wasn't riddles or haikus..." He shuddered.

"So he means he'll tell us later?"

"Pretty much."

She nodded, and they lapsed back into silence. The bus arrived, and they got on, and sat at the back, Annabeth sitting closest to the window, than Hylas next to her, Percy sitting in the seat in front. They sat quietly, Hylas drumming his fingers on the chair in front, before he froze and looked like he had just been caught doing something he shouldn't have been.

"We kinda got a problem..." He said slowly, biting his bottom lip.

As soon as he said that, the bus stopped and three women got on. Annabeth recognised them immediately: "Erinyes..." She whispered. They still brought back bad memories.

Two sat on the front two seats, their legs creating a cross, while the third (Alecto, Percy noted) approached them.

"Brace yourself..." Hylas muttered to Annabeth as she sat down. She tensed for the worse, but was practically floored with shock at what happened.

"Hello Percy..." She purred (PURRED!) to him, licking her lips slightly. "I haven't seen you since this morning."

Annabeth thought she couldn't be shocked anymore. She was wrong. What happened next made even Hylas choke and look bewildered.

Percy smiled - smiled! - seductively and winked. "You could've seen me sooner." He said, his voice deeper than Annabeth remembered, and it made her blush. Alecto blushed, and Annabeth thought she was going insane. An Erinye blushing? What next? A Minotaur in bright white underwear (fruit of the loom, her mind thought helpfully)?

Both Hylas and Annabeth watched with slack jaws as they saw Percy and Alecto flirt with one another. It lasted a few minutes before Alecto changed the subject.

"I've came as a messenger." She said, her tone more serious.

"I thought that was man-slut number 3's job." Percy said, his monotonous voice returning.

Hylas laughed while Annabeth looked scandalised. "You can't say that about the gods!" She hissed, but was ignored.

"Anyway, Lord Hades wants to speak with you in his realm." Alecto said.

"Why can't the dead idiot get off his lazy ass and come here?" Hylas queried.

Alecto ignored the insult. "Lord Hades is currently occupied in his realm, and as Lady Persephone is at Olympus, he has no time to spare."

Percy nodded, and Hylas spoke up again. "Yo, Miss A, can I ask you a question?" She looked suspicious but nodded anyway. Hylas leaned in and stage-whispered. "How much do you think I would need to pay the Princess of thunder to have a go at his wife?" He asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

Before Annabeth and Alecto could even think to look appalled, the sky roared to life, and there was an explosion behind the bus, followed instantly by another from the front of the bus. The bus turned and started to roll, off the road and down into the ditch on the side of the road. The roof of the bus cracked in half, and most of the glass shattered inwards, hitting some unsuspecting mortals and the other two Erinyes, who disintegrated into dust.

Annabeth groaned, her bones aching, and slowly sat up. In the rolling of the bus, she had been flung from her seat and onto the window frames (which were now the floor) of the bus. Her left arm was stinging, blood leaking out of a nasty cut, and she felt wet blood on her forehead. Mumbling about 'idiot blasphemy', she fished out an ambrosia cube out of her bag and munched on it, taking her first look around.

She didn't know what to be surprised and angry about more: the fact that the gods had actually harmed mortals (that she knew some had even died) or the fact that the two responsible for said wrath were standing unfazed at the large gash opening of the bus, neither looking like even a wrinkle or a speck of dust graced them. But what felt like the clincher, was the fact that they both were waiting for her, like it was all her fault that they were in this situation.

Scrambling to her feet, she rushed after their retreating figures, catching up with them when they entered the trees. With a scream of frustration, she flung her bag at Hylas, hitting him on the head and making him fall forward.

"You absolute stupid little imp!" She screeched, grabbing her bag and hitting him again with it. "What. Were. You. Thinking!" She shouted, emphasising each word with a hit from her bag. "We could've been killed! Some mortals were killed!" She stopped for a breath, them rounded on Percy. "And you..." She hissed. "Are you crazy? Flirting with a Kindly One? Do you have a death wish?"

"Oh yeah, I wanted to ask you about that!" Hylas said, completely disregarding Annabeth, much to her frustration. "What was that about, Mr No-Emotion?"

It was like a switch, and suddenly they were looking at Percy in a whole new light. His green eyes had more of gleam to them, his body looked more defined, his hair softer, his clothes more enticing...

"Let's just say... It's one of my other personalities." He winked, making both of them blush. Then, as if the switch turned back off again, the feeling was gone and Percy's face turned back to neutral.

Annabeth stood there, looking dazed yet worried, but Hylas just laughed joyously. "Should've thought that!" He chuckled.

* * *

After a while of walking silently (both Hylas and Percy rarely talked, and when they did it was to each other, causing Annabeth to grind her teeth) they came across a big warehouse. There was a small road running past it, but one look and the three could tell that it was a quiet road. Potholes littered the black surface, and the white paint had faded to a small scrawl.

The warehouse itself was a small-ish building, with faded grey walls and a flat roof. In big red letters read: 'Auntie Em's Garden Gnome Emporium', and there was a big set of black double doors underneath it.

They entered quietly. Inside there were statues of everything. There were people, animals, monsters, even satyrs, all lifelike and all with an expression of terror imprinted on their faces.

"I don't like this..." Annabeth whispered.

"Fine, wait outside then." Percy replied in his normal voice. Out of the three of them, he was the only one that wasn't crouching and sneaking, just walking like he had done through the trees.

"By myself?" Annabeth hissed. "I wouldn't last ten minutes!"

"Take Hylas with you then." Percy said. "There only needs to be one of us looking for anyone here. I will contact you both if I find anything." Before she could protest, he added something else. "I am the son of Gaia. I do not think any monster can get past me."

Reluctantly, Annabeth nodded and left, followed by Hylas who shook his head. To anyone else it was a shake of annoyance or disbelief, but between them it meant only one thing: The gods were not watching.

Percy waited until he hear the door shut before he spoke again.

"Medusa, youngest of the three Gorgon Sisters, daughter of Phorcys and Keto, one cursed by Athena, I wish to speak to you." He announced in a loud but calm voice.

After about a minute of silence, he heard her approach from behind him. He turned and looked at her, her figure dressed in a black dress, a veil covering her face.

"So a brave demigod wishes to slay me." She hissed sarcastically. "Who are you, foul creature?"

He smiled and allowed his body to age to that of an eighteen year olds. "I am the firstborn child of Gaia and Tartarus, Perseus." When she flinched slightly at the name, he scowled, his personality of fear and chaos rising to the surface. "Do not confuse me for that dammed son of Zeus who shares my name." He hissed, venom lacing his words. "He was an insult." He waited a moment and allowed himself to calm down. When calm, he looked at her and flipped her head back and revealed her green snake-hair and her stony-grey eyes.

He kissed her cheek, weaving his destruction powers into the touch. The snake hair died away, leaving long blonde locks in its place. Her eyes softened to a deep sea-blue and lips reddened. Hesitantly, she touched her face and smiled softly at the changes, and looked back at Percy, who was now a twelve year old again.

"A little gift from me." He said. "The curse Athena put upon you is now gone, but the gift remains. You can still turn others into stone, but you can now control it. Also, your sea god powers are back."

She smiled, her second true smile for over two thousand years (the first being only moments ago) and looked at him curiously. "I've got two questions for you. Why have I never heard of you before? Why did you want to help me?"

"I am a secret." Percy stated simply. "No one knows who I am because I wish that. As for why I helped you..." He looked directly into her eyes, and Medusa felt joy at the fact that she could now look people in the eyes without killing them - something she had always liked yet was robbed of. "You are powerful. Because your sisters faded, their passed their power onto you. And now I wish to harness that power... If you would let me..."

She felt happy. She had finally found something to do with her eternal life - something she lost when she refused to fade with her sisters - apart from killing the odd mortal, demigod or satyr. She nodded, not trusting her voice, and he smiled.

"I will send you to Tartarus with my blessing." Percy said. "This will protect you from its horrors, as my father will protect you." He smiled slightly. "You are the fifth person to get this blessing. Feel proud in yourself."

She started to crumble away into the gold dust. It wasn't like the usual way she died - no, this lacked the pain and she could feel herself flowing and being read shaped in a different location. Before she completely disintegrated, she asked a question.

"How can you break the ancient laws?"

He laughed, and it made her both aroused but shiver in fear. "I can do whatever I want. And nothing can ever stop me."

With that parting statement, Medusa crumbled into dust and made her first voluntarily made journey into Tartarus.

* * *

**Another chapter! Huzzah!**

**Oh, I may not be back for a while (see details at top) so I leave you all with some things to think about (ain't I evil?):**

**Who are the other three blessed by Perseus?**

**What is Hestia's 'secret' domain?**

**When will Percy and Zoë finally meet?**

**I know the answer to all three, but it's more fun for people to speculate. So adieu, sayonara, whatever, and I'll post again later!**

**Thanks for being patient!**

**~Nom Nom :3**


	7. Chapter 6 - Annabeth Goes Crazy

**Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson. It's sad, I know, but we all have our own burdens to suffer...**

**Hmm... What can I say? It's another update (yay!) and I feel like it was fast (shush if it wasn't). Also, thank thank thank you all for your support! I mean, look at it! My story has achieved over 145 Favourites and 165 Follows! Wow… Just wow… (This is for you guys!)**

**Anything to say… Nope, that's it. So, here be the responses!**

**The Invisible Pretender: I'M BACK! Yeah, I kinda made the 'Annabeth is getting betrayed' part kinda obvious… but yay! At least my mind can be translated by others (Thank the lord for that)!**

**Wrestling is my best skill: Meh, sorry I don't see Percy as the loner. And your favourite AU with Percy against the gods? Really? That makes me blush!**

**life is short so am I: Best name EVER! Anyway, I don't know what's happening to Annabeth (but I'm leaning to a certain decision). Percy has three personalities: Flirty (from his love domain), Normal (from being stuck in a white room for thousands of years - it'd make anyone bland) and his third from his fear domain (not spoiling the surprise!). No, I don't think he will open up to Annabeth. Maybe Zoë will open him up, just wait and see. Blackjack? Hmm… I don't know… Mrs O'Leary? HELL YES!**

**The Nutty Squirrel: NOM NOM TO YOU TOO!**

**Renu: Really? That good? Wow… Thanks… Wow, I'm blushing here… Anyway, Hylas absolutely hates the gods (and because he's immortal, they can't do jack) so he's a prat because of that.**

**Paradosso di Assassino: …I have no idea how to respond…**

**Menaphite: I know! There's like none where the Titans are just normal, and even less where Gaia is (albeit they are actually evil in Greek Mythology, but still…) and personally, I like it when Percy hates the gods.**

**Kb646: I forgot about them completely… No, he didn't (I'll give you that).**

**To the rest: Thank you! Your words make me feel good!**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS: I've found time to write, so don't expect lots of updates, but don't expect none either!**

* * *

**Bane of Khaos  
**

**Chapter 6 - Annabeth Goes Crazy**

Luke, by nature, was a cautious person. Like all demigods, his body and mind were hardwired for combat, yet his was more so. Years on the streets had changed his son of Hermes instinct (which was usually either pissing about, stealing or both) to someone who relied only upon themselves. Now that he was the medium for Kronos to re-enter the world, it just amplified his own worry and paranoia about one thousand times. He felt the pressure from all directions (the gods, the titans, the campers) and was quickly becoming slightly insane with his paranoia, thinking everyone was out to get him (which they soon would be, but his mind smothered that thought deep down), making him to fall back to, once again, his instincts.

Yet, he was currently ignoring them. They were screaming him to leave quickly, that the longer he lingered the higher the chance that he would be discovered and suffer the wrath of the gods, but he still ignored them and approached the bane of his existence, the one place that _really_ hurt him deep: Thalia's Tree.

Thalia… she had always been a sore spot for Luke. They were together for years, but then she up and 'died' on him or whatever the hell she did with the pine tree (his ADHD brain was leaning towards the word treekinesis) and that hurt him deeply. They were best friends, she was the only person his instincts allowed him to fall back onto, and that worked fine, even though he had always secretly wanting more (that bitch of a daughter of Athena was lusting after him, and he saw how it irritated Thalia).

Yet, right before they last say each other (and she pulled the whole pine tree fiasco) she kissed him. It wasn't like any of the other kisses they shared (accidental, she always said), but something deeper. There were open mouths, tongue and teeth clanking. It was that, and that reason only, that Grover was able to drag him past the camp border and into safety. Whenever he thought about it, he wondered if she did it only to allow him to be saved or if she wanted to be true to herself for a last goodbye.

Now though, he was doing something that he swore to himself never to do for years (not since he failed to retrieve one of the Golden Apples of Immortality from the Garden of Hesperides which he was hoping to use in a ritual to Hecate and Thanatos to hopefully bring Thalia back). Hope. He had hope, a hope to reunite with Thalia, to see her again. Because of a mere demigod's words (he knew he wasn't actually a demigod, but that meant nothing) he had hope. Hope to see Thalia again, and to finally be able to kiss her again. They were a family, and they were always together until _Annabeth_.

Annabeth was someone he hated from the deepest depth of his heart. It was all her fault, if she didn't act like that when they ran into The Army, Thalia would be alive now, and they would be happy. He shook his head - _it does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live_. That was Thalia's favourite saying, and it made him smile slightly.

He stealthily slipped out of Cabin 11 (not an easy feat) with his bag of supplies and made his way up the hill. It was midday, and it was only due to his father's skills that he managed to avoid being detected by anyone. When he reached the hill, he stopped and turned around, looking over the camp. This was the last look of it he would have while he was welcome, because no matter if Thalia did come back or not, he would leave for good.

He checked his watch and silently waited until it was time. It seemed to take forever, and he was almost at the point where he would start accusing Kronos of interfering with time when the watch beeped. It was time. He waited, watching the tree with suspense, but nothing happened. It was another false hope. He was mistaken yet again.

Right before he turned away, ready to walk away forever, he heard a voice.

**Wait.** It hissed.

It was the familiar sensation he had come to respect over the past few months; Kronos himself was speaking to him.

_My Lord?_ He questioned.

**Wait.** Kronos repeated. **Wait, young Luke, for my brother does not give gifts lightly.**

_G-Gift?_

**My elder brother rarely blesses anyone, be it immortal or mortal. Apart from myself, there are only four others have received his blessing, two from the last week alone. Your friend is one such mortal.** Kronos smirked. **Or should I say one such ****_immortal_****?**

Luke gulped and decided to wait. It didn't take long (he suspected his watch had been tampered with), only about an extra minute or so before the tree shimmered. It was only for a fraction of a second, but in that time, Thalia fell out from inside the tree, aged about 17. She looked how he always thought she'd grow up to be: short black hair, black clothes with various chains and skulls on them, and looking like she had just fallen out of a modelling magazine.

Luke smiled softly, the first true smile in years, and approached her, picking up her limp body. He was in Percy's debt, but he didn't care anymore. He had Thalia back where she belonged: with him.

* * *

The three of them spent the rest of their time in silence. After Percy returned with food, they ate and slept. Annabeth was beyond frustrated that night, and the two days following it, as Hylas had gotten 'inspiration from a poodle' and found a train heading west. So, for two days, they remained quiet in their train compartment, the silence grating at Annabeth's nerves. Then, she just couldn't take it. She snapped.

Without a thought of what may happen, she grabbed the necks of both Percy's and Hylas' shirts and jumped off the moving train.

In hindsight, it wasn't the best idea. For starters, this was a moving train (that was taking them directly where they needed to go) so the landing hurt. Second was the fact that she decided to jump out the door atop a hill, causing them to roll down like potato sacks, her grip on the two boys causing her more problems than she would've thought. Then it was where they ended up.

She had gotten word (AKA an Iris Message from Chiron) that The Army were in St Louis hunting the Chimera and Echidna, so she planned to avoid there completely. But the Moirai had a funny sense of humour, and they decided to let the city which they ended up in to be St Louis.

She had never liked The Army, especially Zoë Nightshade. It all started when she, Thalia and Luke crossed paths with them many years ago…

* * *

_Luke, Thalia and Annabeth were walking through the streets of a small town in Texas. The air was hot and dry, and they were all soaked in sweat, their bodies refusing to stop wasting their precious water. They were being chased by a multitude of monsters - they had been since somewhere near Dallas - and were almost at the end of their rope._

_Annabeth collapsed first. Her small seven yearold body wasn't able to cope with all tth stress, and her knees just gave out. Luke and Thalia stopped and helped her, but their pace slowed and the monsters didn't. Annabeth was sure it was the end, until a Hellhound exploded into golden dust._

_The monsters didn't even have time to blink before they were swarmed with masses of people, all wielding swords, maces or spears, all a dull grey colour. For a moment she though it was steel and began to shout a warning, but the weapons had an effect on the monsters and they were harmed, a multitude of them turning into dust._

_It only took about a minute, but the group dispatched all the monsters effortlessly and flawlessly, earning envy from Annabeth which quickly turned to shape. How dare she feel envious of those who saved them!_

_A young woman, looking about sixteen years old, approached them. She was wearing steel armour, plated so it looked more form-fitting, with an engraving of two crossed swords over her heart. Underneath it, in big gold letters read the word 'Lieutenant', covering her whole left breast. She smiled at them, and sheathed her long sword of steel._

_"Hello." She greeted them. "I am Zoë Nightshade, Lieutenant of The Army."_

_"The Army?" Luke asked. "As in, the navy and all that stuff?"_

_Zoë merely smiled. "Ah, you do not know much of our world, do you young demigods. The Army stands for The Divine Army of Mankind, led by Heracles to rid the world of monsters."_

_"Heracles?" Annabeth asked. "You mean Thalia's half-brother who married Hebe? Heracles of the Twelve Labours?"_

_Zoë's eyes darkened at the mention of Hebe. "Heracles did not marry _her_-" She spat the word like it was an insult. "-but yes, that Heracles."_

_"Why did you save us?" Thalia asked, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. "My father doesn't care for me. None of our godly parents care for us."_

_"Lord Zeus doesn't dictate The Army's actions." Zoë said. "Heracles just wishes that another one of his half-siblings doesn't die because of Lady Hera's rage, or because of age old limitations."_

_Thalia nodded._

_"And I am also offering you a safe haven. There are only two places in the whole world where all the gods agree on something. That is The Hunters of Artemis, and The Army. Because of the deeds performed by us and The Hunt, all gods let any demigods and mortals remain in their respective area, and because The Hunt only allows women, we thought that we could offer you a place here. Both you and your friend Luke will be able to join, and we can escort your friend Annabeth here to another safe place: Camp Half-Blood."_

_Annabeth froze. She was going to take away her family, and leave her all alone in a strange place. What was even worse was the fact that Luke and Thalia were actually considering it._

_"We a-" Thalia began, but was interrupted by Annabeth._

_"NO!" She screeched. "You will not leave me! YOU WON'T ABANDON ME!" She turned to Zoë. "You will go now before I call all the monsters here!"_

_"Annabeth, stop it!" Luke shouted, but she ignored him._

_"Minotaur, Medusa, Mormo." Annabeth recited. "Harpies, Ichthyocentaurs, Stheno, Euryale, Lamia, Hydra-" Luke clamped his hand over her mouth, but it was too late. A monster roared in the distance, another one cackled, while a third hissed._

_"You idiot child!" Zoë hissed. "Even we cannot fight all those at once! Goodbye, stupid mortal."_

_With those parting words, she was gone with the rest of The Army, leaving the three of them to deal with the monsters._

* * *

Now that she thought back on it, she acted like a child. She summoned too many monsters which ultimately lead to the death of Thalia… No, it wasn't her fault! It was Zoë's! She shouldn't have tried to steal her family from her! Thalia died because of her! If she saw her again, she would not let mere words pass between them.

Annabeth's thoughts were interrupted when she landed face down on a concrete pavement. Groaning in pain, she warily pushed herself up, getting ready to help both Percy and Hylas up, only to find that they both were watching her, looking both amused and angry.

"Care to explain?" Hylas asked, tapping his foot.

Annabeth chuckled nervously. "I wanted to be in St Louis because… Of the Gateway Arch… And also The Army is here!"

Percy looked pleased at that. "The Army? Good, there is someone I want to talk to in there..."

It escaped Annabeth's mind that Percy shouldn't know what The Army stood for.

They wandered about St Louis for about half an hour before they found something worthwhile: a fat woman walking a small Chihuahua. Normally, this would've fell under the category of worthless, but there were some problems with them both: the dog was drooling some form of black sludge, its eyes were completely black, and the woman had a forked tongue flicking out her mouth.

With a subtle look towards Hylas, Percy approached he woman while Hylas distracted Annabeth talking about knowledge or architecture or something like that. Without her noticing, the two began to gradually move away from him.

"Oh look son!" She smiled, her mouth revealing long, sharp white teeth. "Another little godling!"

Percy smiled. His mind shifted slightly - very much like a god's would when their aspect changed - to his third, most evil personality, one he had never used for over two thousand years.

"Well well…" He said quietly, his voice spreading like a thick, black fog. "Now I must say that _this_… This is a surprise…"

His voice was lower than it had been before, holding a deep menacing growl as an undertone, the words vibrating in her very bones. It made her freeze up, partially in fear while partially in recognition. She knew exactly who he was, as she has heard the voice so many times before, and no one else she had met had been able to prompt her body with such a fearful reaction.

She opened her mouth, closed it and swallowed then opened it again, her voice a small dry croak. "F-Father?"

He smiled, showing all his teeth. His body aged rapidly to one of an eighteen year old's, his clothes changing to black all over with chains and spikes coming off it. Tattoos covered his skin, black and red, forever shifting and changing like they were alive. He gained multiple piercings: for in each ear, two in his mouth and one above his left eyebrow. Now he looked intimidating to match his voice - a perfect example of what people in feared.

"Hello Echidna. What, no hug for you dad?"

He opened his arms wide, an invitation for her to run to him. She did just that without a moment's hesitation, her cheeks wet with free-flowing tears. In his arms, she changed back to her young, beautiful body that Percy had first created for her when he decided Typhon should have a consort. Her hair lengthened, and became a fiery red, and her skin darkened, so it became a deep brown colour. Her eyes remained black, but tears clouded them.

"Where have you been?" She whispered after she was able to calm herself.

Percy laughed, the noise making Echidna shiver. "Well you know… Here, there…"

She half laughed half sobbed in his arms. "No, but you left! When the Titans fell and Gaia fell into a slumber, you just vanished! Typhon was sealed, and I with our children were forced to be fodder for the stupid godlings! You didn't even contact me, or anyone!"

Percy narrowed his eyes slightly. "You think I wasn't planning? Khaos herself is behind them, and I am the only one who will be able to even stand against her." He suddenly smiled widely. "And here comes another stage in my plan."

Echidna quickly turned around and saw a young woman, about sixteen years of age, wearing steel armour, plated so it looked more form-fitting, with an engraving of two crossed swords over her heart. Underneath it, in big gold letters read the word 'Lieutenant', covering her whole left breast. She narrowed her eyes at them, and levelled her sword so that it was pointing at them.

"Echidna and…" She asked, her body tense.

"Now now…" Percy taunted, his voice making the woman flinch back a step and lower her sword a fraction. "If it isn't Zoë Nightshade, the Lieutenant of The Army." Percy took a step forward, so that he was now in front of Echidna, while Zoë inadvertently took a step back.

"Wh-Who are you?" She demanded bravely, if not slightly nervously. Percy admired the fact that even though she was scared, she still stood her ground. "This is no concern of you!"

"It is if you want my daughter." He said, smirking at the reaction he got. Her eyes widened, her sword lowered fractionally again so now it was levelled at his stomach and not his chest, yet she still stood her ground.

"You're… Tartarus?" She whispered, her voice small and cracking.

"Ah, people do say that I look like my father, but I have my mother's eyes."

Her brow furrowed in confusion. "Your father is Tartarus and your mother…" She looked at the glowing green orbs, but couldn't put her finger on where she had seen them before.

"Let me give you a hint." Percy said. "She had green eyes like mine, she's powerful… Oh yeah, they call her Mother Earth?"

Zoë took a few steps back in alarm and almost dropped her sword. Anything born from two primordial - especially Tartarus and Gaia - was extremely bad news. Percy ignored her hesitation and leaned in to her ear and whispered to her.

"Youre going to leave, and go back to Heracles. Tell him I know where Hylas is, and he will see him. Soon." He paused for a moment. "And I will see you soon too, Nightshade. Real soon."

Zoë blushed, and Percy flicked his wrist. The earth around her feet rose up and wrapped around her, covering her completely before it collapsed, her body disappearing. He turned back to Echidna.

"It feels like I'm sending everyone to Tartarus…" He muttered. He lent in and kissed her forehead, making her body disintegrate into dust.

Now that she was gone, Percy allowed himself to de-age back to his twelve year old self before looking at the Chimera. It was sitting patiently while Percy chatted with both its mother and The Soldier, sensing the power he had.

"I want you to chase us." He commanded, his voice back to its neutral state he had spent thousands of years in. "Make sure you do not catch us, but also ensure that the pesky daughter of nosiness does not catch on that you want to chase us. Make sure you chase us to where Ares is." The Chimera nodded understandingly before trotting off, getting into position. Percy sighed, and began walking away at a leisurely pace towards Hylas.

* * *

The redhead was in shock. She had just saw a boy age before her eyes, a woman change her appearance, another woman wield a sword before the man frightened her and performed at what looked like magic to the women to make them disappear, then he calmly talked to the giant lion/snake/goat creature before it trotted off. Then he de-aged like it was nothing and just walked off.

"Rachel!" A voice called from behind her. "We're leaving in a moment!"

She sighed but shouted back that she was coming before she thought about what she had just seen. Yes she had saw magic (that is what she dubbed it as) but didn't entirely hear what they said. There were snippets, but there were only four names (what she perceived as names anyway) which she heard clearly: Gaia, Tartatus, Echidna and Chimera. Sighing, she turned around to the limousine, thinking about all the research ahead of her to solve the mystery.

* * *

Annabeth felt cheated. Both herself and Hylas were chatting about architecture - something that even her siblings from Athena couldn't keep up with her - and they were doing fine until a loud roar from behind made her jump. Turning to look she saw a lion with a goat head on its hack and a snake for a tail running towards them. The Chimera, she cursed. It was exactly what they needed.

_Wit beyond measure is a man's greatest treasure_. She calmed herself down and let her logical side take over, rationally taking everything in. Then things went from bad to worse.

"Where's Percy?" She shouted as soon as they began running. Hylas quickly glanced around them before shrugging.

"I don't know. Maybe we forgot him?" He asked her, making her scream her frustration.

"He's your friend isn't he?"

"Well he can handle himself."

"It's great that you think that, but what if he's lying dead in a ditch somewhere?"

"It is nice to see such faith in my survival skills." Percy said from just behind them, making Annabeth almost jump out of her skin while Hylas merely smirked.

"Took your time, didn't you?" Hylas said, taking a risky glance to see Percy's face. One look was all it took, and he instantly knew that it wasn't a coincidence that the Chimera was chasing them. That made his mouth twith - it was so typical of him.

"I hate to say this, but it is getting faster. We need to run quicker." Percy calmly stated, making Annabeth almost tripped.

It would be a miracle if she finished the quest and she was still sane…

* * *

**Ah I know it's not the best, but it had importance to it. Next chapter has Ares, so who knows what'll happen…**

**This is filler chapter. I'm sorry if it's not what you expect, but it makes certain points that I needed to make.**

**Ok, who Percy has blessed in order:**

**1 - Kronos**

**2 - ?**

**3 - Hylas**

**4 - Thalia**

**5 - Medusa**

**Who is number 2?**

**Yeah, this is just to make you think. Also, I've decided that there is no 'Sea of Monsters' in this, it'll just go straight to 'The Titan's Curse'.**

**Until next time…**

**~Nom Nom :3**

**PS; Anyone notice the three Harry Potter references, eh? I just couldn't help myself, they just fitted in!**


	8. Chapter 7 - The Truth Behind the Myths

**Disclaimer: I really don't know why I include these anymore… ME NO OWN!**

**Ah, 'tis be another chapter arrr! Ok I really can't do pirate speak… so anyway, I'm surprised. Almost no one found all three references to Harry Potter (I think Mrmngrl101 did so congrats). People got one or two, but not all three! Either no hard-core Harry Potter fans read this, or my mind is strange enough to find references in completely random things. So here were the references (in my mind anyway):**

**1 - '****_it does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live'_****. Luke said this was Thalia's favourite saying, and it's what Dumbledore says to Harry when he finds the mirror of Erised.**

**2 - '****_people do say that I look like my father, but I have my mother's eyes'_****. Percy said this. This is what Harry is always told by anyone who knew his parents.**

**3 - ****_'Wit beyond measure is a man's greatest treasure'_****. Annabeth calming herself down. Luna says this (I think it's the first thing she actually says to Harry) and it's from the Sorting Hat's Song.**

**These are the things I meant. I know they're not word for word, but the general idea is there.**

**Ok, the second person Percy blessed: no one has guessed it (I think). It's quite obscure, but there are BIG reasons behind it, which will make sense later on in the story. Pity for you all though, you won't find out for a while (aww).**

**Menaphite: Yes this is a Percy V The Gods fic. I also used Khaos because she is the extreme powerful being and power corrupts (also way too many include her being a nice person. I mean if you had ultimate power what would you do? You really wouldn't be responsible or adopt a lower life form out of 'the goodness of your heart').**

**Hmmm… Thanks for all the other reviews. Most of them said how the last chapter was great for a filler chapter, even though I didn't see it… But that made me feel good! So thank you all! *insert blushing face here***

**~Nom Nom :3**

**IMPORTANT:**

**This chapter reveals the history behind Percy, and I warn you like lots of the Greek Myths, it is not pleasant.**

* * *

**Bane of Khaos**

**Chapter 7 - The Truth Behind the Myths**

The Chimera chased the three for about five miles before it stopped. Annabeth was dying from muscle cramps and lack of oxygen, and even the immortal Hylas and Percy felt the strain from all the exercise. After the adrenaline from the chase faded, it paved the path for hunger and tiredness. Annabth felt like she could eat Hylas (no way could she eat Percy - he looked way too handsome), while both the boys acted the same way, having no actual need for food.

"Oh my GODS!" Annabeth screamed. "There's a fast food store right there" She didn't wait for her two (slightly disturbed) comrades to answer before grabbing their hands and dragging them in a sprint to the shop. Edd's Burgers, apparently, cooked the best burgers around.

Annabeth slammed through the door and was about to rush over to the counter before Hylas spoke up. "You do know we have no money."

That stopped her in her tracks. Groaning in frustration, she turned to the two with practically begging eyes. "You are a son of _Gaia_-" She said pointing to Percy before pointing at Hylas. "-and you're a fateweaver. You must have _something_ up your sleeves!"

"How about we ask him?" Percy said, pointing behind her. She turned around to see him pointing at a biker man in his early twenties, wearing a leather jacket with a flaming skull on, black jeans and black boots with red specks (blood?) on them. He had short brown hair and blood red eyes, with multiple of scars and piercings all over his face. He watched them with smirk.

"Well, you're smarter than I thought brat." He said in a deep, rough voice that made Annabeth flinch. "Come and sit with me demigods."

It finally clicked for Annabeth. He was Ares, God of War. That didn't bode well for her. The four sat at a table next to the window, Annabeth notably more nervous than the other two.

"So, Lord of pissing contests." Hylas said, making Annabeth squeak and Ares narrow his eyes for a moment before laughing. Annabeth missed the subtle glance at Percy and the slight paling of god of war's face, making Percy question if she was really a daughter of Athena after all.

"I like you kid." Ares smirked. "Not a lot of demigods have the balls to talk to a god like that."

"Lord Ares." Annabeth said meekly. "What do you want?"

For a second, Annabeth could've sworn that Ares shimmered for a moment, looking slightly older, harsher and more fierce yet orderly before she blinked and it was gone.

"Ah, a daughter of Athena…" He muttered disdainfully. "Wonderful."

It was a little known fact that was somewhat forgotten from the history books, but Ares was a third party who tried to become the patron god of Athens. While his uncle Poseidon offered some water and Athena offered a twig or something, he offered shields and spears. Yet Athena won, she never stopped bragging, then Greece fell and the Romans tarred Athena with the aspect of Minerva, which she never stopped crying about. She didn't like how his other aspect, Mars, gained so much respect, so now Mars has an irrational (actually it was fairly rational) hatred of Athena and her children (but not Minerva strangely enough).

"Anyway, I have a quest for you twerps." He said pointing at Annabeth and Hylas. "I wanna speak to the son of Gaia. You two need to go get my shield. I left it when I had a date with Aphrodite."

Ares never understood how the truth became so twisted. He and Aphrodite had never been together. Ever. Aphrodite had never actually cheated on her husband Hephaestus. She was the goddess of love, and she was completely smitten with him and had never even looked in his direction like that. Not even that, he would never cheat on his wife.

Yes, Ares the God of War (and the God of Peace, but that was never recorded either) was married.

It wasn't actually Ares who was married but Mars. His wife was Lupa, mother of Rome (and not a virgin goddess by far if you know what he means), and had been for over two thousand years. She didn't mind his infidelities because he was an Olympian God - meaning his sex drive was much MUCH higher than an average god's, and something he just couldn't help. They had made their peace over that, something which his mother Hera could never do.

"Where was you _date_?" Hylas asked. He said date in such a way it made Ares smile. Yes, he knew alright… Ares quickly described the location (a waterpark of some kind) and the duo quickly set off, Annabeth sending worried glances back at Percy.

Ares turned back to Percy, who had a smug smile on his face. Ares had been told by his grandfather that Percy (or really Perseus) was perhaps the strongest being in existence, but the twelve year old brat in front of him just made him want to snort at that, but he knew looks could be deceiving.

"So, Perseus…" Ares said. "Why have I never heard of you before?"

Percy just smirked at that, his posture becoming slightly harsher. "Because I never wanted you to." He said simply, in a voice that was deep in a way that made him want to shiver, yet also blush. Kronos told him of his powers, but he didn't expect his mere voice to hold sway (like Hestia's did). Ares relaxed subconsciously, knowing that it was the right person.

"I have the items." He said, lifting a pack up onto the table. When he looked back at Percy, he was slightly shocked to see that he was now around eighteen years old, looking both intimidating and intoxicating. Percy grabbed the back and shifted through it.

"The master bolt… the trident… the helm of darkness. Good." He said, smiling. "Your help will be rewarded."

Ares shook his head and shimmered into his Roman counterpart. "No, I only wish safety for myself and my wife." Mars said.

"And you have it." Percy said. "If you stay and fight with our side, you will be rewarded greatly."

Mars looked at him, giving no answer before shimmering back to his Greek form. "We will see. Now I gotta ask, tell me about yourself. I mean, obviously the things I thought were true are not, so what is the truth?"

Percy thought for a moment before holding out his hand. "I will… If you fight with me."

Mars whispered caution, but the headstrong side of Ares pushed him away and shook the hand. He wanted to be in on the war anyway. "Deal."

As soon as he clasped Percy's hand, a shell of earth wrapped around it and glowed for a moment before dissolving back away into nothing.

"Did… Did you just bless me?" Ares asked, slightly shocked.

Percy shook his head. "No, but domain allows me to… tweak with pre-existing things and facts, if you will. I cannot exploit it right now because my presence is not known to our enemy, but with your godly aura here, she will just look over minor things."

"She?" Ares echoed.

"She. Khaos. Mother of all. The Void. Name her what you will, but she will hunt me down without three beings, '_the home, the prince and the knight_' can apparently mask my presence."

"Yeah, I'm no good with all that rhyming crap." Ares shrugged, trying to hide his unease about fighting the creator herself. "So, will you tell me about you?"

"My name is Perseus." Percy said. "I was born around three years after the creation of my parents, Gaia and Tartarus. Khaos did not like her eldest twins together, but she wasn't aware of me. I hid myself as an extinction of my father." He said. "However, even though I did that, I did not get free. She feared my power - or really when she assumed that when my parents had a child - so she imprisoned us Tartarus, my father's domain. However, Khaos did not like how she could not control Gaia and so chained her to the earth, removing one of her domains and moulding a completely new being - Ouranous." Percy spat the name with such venom that it almost made Ares stop his question. Almost.

"Wait, so Khaos created Ouranous?" He asked. "I always thought Gaia created him herself."

Percy just shook his head. "No, that was the 'official' story. The truth is my mother was chained to the earth, on a raised mound - you probably know where, the place where the sky forever wants to reconnect with the earth - and Ouranous was created from the separation of the earth and sky. Then, every night for about ten years he would arrive at that point and rape my mother."

Percy chuckled darkly. "She hated all her children with him, for they joined forces with Khaos too and were sent to Tartarus to guard both myself and my father. The Hekatonkheires and the Cyclopes became the guards to our cells, and it looked like it was going to continue like that until the Titans were born."

"Koios, Krios, Kronos, Hyperion, Iapetos, Mnemosyne, Oceanus, Phoebe, Rhea, Tethys, Theia and Themis, the Titans. They originally followed the rule of Khaos, but when she became complacent they rebelled. They freed us from the prison inside Tartarus, and rose against Ouranous. I blessed Kronos and gifted him with a scythe, and he castrated Ouranous, throwing his… little man into the ocean, where Oceanus washed them away to the furthest corners of the world."

"We had peace for a while. Kronos became the king of the Titans and created the human race, and Kronos' and Rhea's first child, Hestia was born. Then Khaos realised what had happened to the earth. She was unaware of Hestia, so she cursed Rhea so that all her children born from then on would forever feel hatred towards the Titans."

"They did not believe her at first, until Hera was born. They decided they needed an appropriate jail for all the children thereafter, and Hestia herself suggested the stomach of her father, and even offered to be the jailer. So, after more years Zeus, their sixth child was born. Unknowingly to them, Khaos switched baby Zeus with a stone statue of the baby, and you know the rest."

"So all that stuff about Kronos being fed mustard and him being shopped up is true?" Ares asked.

Percy nodded. "Everything people know is true until near the end where it is almost completely fabricated. When the Giant War was all but lost, I released two of my best creations, Typhon and his consort Echidna as a distraction. They knew that they were, and they almost succeeded, but when we were travelling through the Underworld, Zeus, Poseidon and Hades caught up with us, my mother held them off until Khaos herself came along and put her into a deep sleep."

"Then all thirteen of you came for my father." After seeing Ares' puzzled look, Percy sighed. "Khaos came back and sealed my father deep within his domain, and erased the memory of all twelve gods present."

"Wait, you said thirteen. Who kept their memories?"

"That's simple, Hestia did. Khaos has always been lazy and too overconfident, and she did not realise that Hestia was not a god when she erased all the gods that were present's memories."

"If Hestia isn't a god, what is she?" Ares asked.

"That is simple. She is a Titan. The curse Khaos inflicted upon Rhea and the children was to turn them into being that would forever hate the Titans: the Gods. Hestia was not inflicted by the curse, so she is a Titan. Currently, only eleven of the fourteen major Olympians are Gods. Three are actually Titans."

"Three?" Ares echoed, extremely surprised. "How did my father not notice this?"

"Well, two have been Titans longer than Zeus has been alive, and he is not that smart to figure it out, and another has been a Titan for about…" Percy checked his watch. "Eleven minutes, give or take."

That was when it hit him. Percy didn't bless him when they shook hands (not that he doubted his word), but change him into a Titan. It was quite scary how much power Percy held.

"So myself, Hestia and… Who's the third?" Ares questioned.

"Aphrodite. She was born from the essence that impregnated my mother, and has not been in contact with the curse. It passes down through the gods as the dominant allele in the gene, so to speak."

"Dominant allele?" Ares once again repeated. It was worse than talking with Athena - at least if she said things about battle tactics Mars would help. He was currently drawing blank though, and so was Mars.

"A mortal science thing." Percy waved off. "It basically means if one parent is a god, the child will always be a god. Quite a nifty little curse idea, I remembered borrowing it when creating the Bubonic plague…" Percy sighed wistfully.

"That was you?" Ares laughed. "That was one of the 'few'-" Ares hand quoted. "-things that Athena could never figure out."

"Yeah, her kid - I forgot their name - was the one who cured it." Percy waved him off. "But anyway, we are getting off topic. Aphrodite may be a Titan, but she supports Zeus' reign and is under the thumb of Khaos and hence a threat. Hestia however, is another case. I don't know her allegiance, except that she has named her champion as Zoë Nightshade from The Army, as they call it."

"So?" Ares asked, not really seeing the point why he brought it up. "A few gods have named their champion."

"No you do not understand." Percy said shaking his head. "It is not the fact that she has named her champion, but the fact of _who_ she named as her champion. Zoë Nightshade is - well, was - a Hesperide sister. She was neither the youngest of the nine, nor the oldest of the nine."

"Wait nine?" Ares asked. "There was only eight including Zoë herself."

Percy looked at Ares in shock. "Wait, so you don't know about Pallia?" He asked, his voice dropping a couple of octaves making it become threatening. Ares wanted to cower, but Mars wouldn't allow it.

"Who is Pallia?" Mars asked, taking over from a slightly scared Ares.

Percy growled a deep menacing growl, making Mars' determination crack and caused him to cower before the furious eighteen year old.

"That _bitch_!" Percy spat. "I thought the knowledge was hidden from the mortals because of her embarrassment, but to hide it from your ears…" He shook his head and calmed himself slightly. His voice returned to his normal, neutral state. "No matter, it appears I will be telling you another story."

"Pallia was the second oldest of the Hesperide sisters. She herself was unique compared to her sisters, as she was not bound to the Garden of Hesperides. She was the only one able to travel freely, and thus became a favourite of her mother, Pleione as she was able to visit. However, when Hera discovered the Hesperides plucking the Golden Apples for themselves, she also discovered Pallia gifting some to her mother and father."

"To show that she would not allow dishonesty, Hera used her husband's weapon, his lightning bolt, to strike her down where it would hurt - her mother. Yet, Hera missed and hit Pallia herself. Pleione pleaded to her parents, and willingly sacrificed her essence to bring her daughter back. Oceanus and Tethys took pity upon their daughter, and shaped her sacrifice so that it created the five rivers of the Underworld: the Styx, the Acheron, the Lethe, the Phlegethon and the Cocytus."

"Her sacrifice brought Pallia back, but at a price. She was no longer an immortal Hesperide sister, but a mere mortal. A mortal who would not be able to traverse the slopes of Atlas Mountains, and thus separated from her family. She was alone in the Ancient Greek world, and you must know what that was like."

Ares nodded, absorbing the information. Mars had retreated back inside, as Perseus was Greek, not Roman, and he wouldn't talk with him longer than necessary. "But why hide it then? What would Hera gain from hiding it?" He refused to call Hera his mother.

"Hera did not hide it, well not from the gods anyway. I believe Khaos hid it to hide the power of a willing sacrifice… But why would she benefit from it?" Percy mused, before shaking his head. "No matter, I will find out soon…"

Ares nodded. When Percy made no move to open his mouth, Ares decided to ask something both his and Mars' mind was pushing. "I've got a question." Percy looked up. "You know how I'm a Titan now?" He nodded. "What about my wife?"

Percy smiled. "Well you are married, so she has also been… 'influenced' by me, and is now a Titan herself." Ares nodded, extremely relieved.

"So, do you have it?" Percy asked after another moment of silence.

"Yeah. But why do you need them?" Ares asked, as he dumped a bag upon the table. Percy looked inside to see the three Big Three weapons inside. He smirked.

"Well…"

* * *

"Stupid gods, stupid dates…" Hylas muttered as he climbed the fence of the abandoned amusement park. The water park itself was still in good condition, with less than a year of neglect and decay under its belt.

"Be careful what you say." Annabeth warned as he helped her over the iron gates. He just rolled his eyes and grabbed her legs to study her. "Hey, I mean it!" Hylas just shrugged.

After the small gate, the walked around the park with relative ease. They searched all the inside areas to come up empty, so they moved onto the outer rides.

"I can't imagine any gods doing small." Hlyas said. "I don't think it's in their vocabulary." Annabeth sniggered but didn't comment. They looked over about two more places until they found the right one: a large basin like area with a small bench in the middle, with a shield in one side and a scarf across another.

"I doubt this was made like this." Hylas noted. "I bet divine interference. Hephaestus perhaps?"

Annabeth looked cynical. "What do you know? I'm a daughter of Athena and it looks fine to me."

"Fine." He snorted. "If it's so fine, just go down there and pick up the shield." A slight worried look crossed her face. "That is, unless you don't trust yourself."

Her face hardened and she walked down into the basin without a backwards glance. If she did look back, she would've seen the smug smile on Hylas' face. When she reached the shield she hesitated for a moment before wrapping the pink scarf of Aphrodite around her neck before picking up the shield. It took less than a second to realise it was a trap, but by the time she looked toward Hylas he was standing outside a golden mesh.

Around the rim of the basin, eight cameras rose from points equal in distance to on another, with small golden spiders crawling out from the open hole. Annabeth screamed and stood on the highest point on the bench (which wasn't that high up),

"Live to Olympus in 10… 9… 8… 7…"

Annabeth screamed again as the spiders were almost upon her. They were made to immobilize _gods_, not demigods. Yup, she was going to die.

"6… 5… 4…"

And she would be embarrassing her mother Athena too. This would just give Poseidon more leverage over her, all because she was blinded by the fact that she couldn't see something another person could.

"3… 2…"

A spider was on top of her and positioned itself to stab her with its teeth (something that looked VERY out of place) and inject her with poison that would most likely kill her. She closed her eyes and waited for her inevitable death. But it never came.

She counted at least five seconds before she opened her eyes. What she saw was a surprise: every single spider and camera had collapsed to the ground, as if they had just stopped working. The golden net was still up, but it had a large gash down the end of it. Hylas stood there, just like he had done before, with the same smug smile on his face.

"I did tell you." He smirked.

* * *

When they arrived back at the burger house, Annabeth saw that Ares was grinning madly and even the ever neutral Percy was smiling. Hylas and Annabeth sat down next to the two, and they looked at her before Ares burst out laughing.

"What?" She asked, slightly miffed.

Ares just shook his head. "He will show you in a minute." He clicked his fingers and the shield dissolved from Annabeth's hands and a ring that looked remarkably similar to the shield appeared on Ares' little finger. With that, he disappeared, leaving the bag which Percy took

Annabeth rounded on Percy. "Care to explain?"

He merely smiled and handed her a newspaper clipping that read:

_ANNABETH CHASE: THE CRAZY GIRL'S TRAIL OF TERROR_

* * *

**Tah dah! Tis another chapter done!**

**Ok, I know Ares is so OoC it hurts, but I don't care. Also I added some myths and completely distorted others, but it is all for the master plan! So please bear with me. Anyway, I think the next chapter will be like the second to last chapter on 'The Lightning Thief' plot, so we're almost there!**

**~Nom Nom :3**


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